


Decoy

by KeepRealityStrange



Series: The Decoy [1]
Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Demisexuality, I've never watched the anime, M/M, No Beta, No kagami, Pansexual Character, Season 1, Slow Burn, So let's see how it goes, The Zone, We Die Like Women, poorly described basketball
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-06
Updated: 2020-04-06
Packaged: 2021-03-02 05:22:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 34
Words: 29,520
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23509846
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KeepRealityStrange/pseuds/KeepRealityStrange
Summary: Kinjo Yuya is a guy who everyone can see, even when he doesn't want them to. Kuroko Tetsuya is a guy who struggles to be seen in general. They are two people on opposite ends of the same spectrum.*I've never seen the anime, or read the manga, so all of my knowledge of the canon characters comes from other fanfics and the wiki fandom page*Follows Season 1 plot line, Season 2 currently underway
Relationships: Kuroko Tetsuya/Original Male Character(s)
Series: The Decoy [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1691668
Comments: 4
Kudos: 28





	1. A New Start

**Author's Note:**

> I want to preface this fic by stating: I HAVE NOT WATCHED THE ANIME OR READ THE MANGA  
> All my knowledge of this series comes from other fanfics and the wiki fandom page for the show. If you find any character OOC, this is the reason why.

Music played through my headphones that sit atop my brown hair while on my way to my new high school. A smile is on my face, and I feel like nothing can really bring me down. It’s a new year, a new country, a fresh start. I don’t have to be anything, no pressure to be who  _ he _ wants me to be, I get to be myself. 

I get to my new classroom, introduce myself, and sit down in a seat next to a window. The teacher’s voice drowns out as I focus on writing notes, my shorthand as messy as ever. 

I’ve always been able to focus extremely well when I’ve needed to. It’s one of the things that made  _ him _ so interested in me in the first place. But that’s in the past. 

Eyes follow my every move, but again, it’s something that I’m used to. People have always watched me, I’ve never been out of anyone’s sight, and yet no one knows me. It’s truly a skill to be known but unknown. I know the stares won’t go away with time, I’m always attracting attention. 

“Excuse me.” A voice breaks through my focus. It’s light, but flat at the same time. 

I turn in my seat and there sits a boy with light blue hair, and bright blue eyes that I can tell express so much, but have a hidden depth to them. 

“Yes?” 

“Would you be able to explain this to me? I didn’t quite hear what Sensei was saying during the lecture.” He asks, soft voice and a hopeful gaze. 

I smile and nod, turning even further around and looking over where the boy is having issues. I see the notes tapered off after a section on when to use commas in a sentence. It’s easy to say what’s needed, and I watch as the boy works through the practice sentences. When he’s done, he spins the paper around and I look it over quickly. Nodding in approval over the work, a small smile lights up his face. 

“My name is Kinjo Yuya.” I say, realizing that this guy might be a potential friend. 

“I’m Kuroko Tetsuya, nice to meet you Kinjo-san.” He replies, and I grin. 

“We both have colors in our last names! This is fate!” I exclaim, already knowing that we have the attention of the entire class on us. Kuroko looks at me strangely. While waiting for a response, I listen to what is being said around us. 

“Why is he talking to air?” 

“You think the new kid is crazy?” 

“There’s gotta be some reason he’s talking to himself.” 

I try not to frown at the comments. Valiantly, I keep a straight face, still waiting on Kuroko to say something. Finally, he opens his mouth. 

“So it seems Kinjo-san. Also, don’t worry about the class thinking you’re crazy. They all forget that I’m here, so it’s not unusual.” 

Now I let the frown take over. “They don’t notice you at all? I’m sorry.” 

“I just have a low presence, Kinjo-san.” 

I can’t help but chuckle, which causes Kuroko to cock his head to the side much like a puppy. “It seems I possess the opposite. My presence is too noticeable.” 

“Too noticeable?” 

“Surely you can feel all the eyes looking over this way right now. For some reason, people have always known I was around. Even when I was little.” 

Our conversation lulls at this point. It’s just easy to be in Kuroko’s presence. I don’t have to fit into any mold that’s given to me, I can just be. 

A week goes by, and when the new week starts so does the club recruitment. 

I played baseball for years, got a nickname in middle school, got scouted by several high schools and universities, but baseball wasn’t fun anymore. I want something new. 

I spot Kuroko’s light blue hair in the sea of brown and black hair. Following him, I end up at the table for the basketball team. He’s filling out the club sheet right in front of the two people sitting there and they don’t see him at all. In fact, they notice me walking over when I’m twenty feet away. Kuroko turns, and I smile and wave at him. His face lights up with shock, but he quickly recovers and waves back at me. 

“Hello! Do you want to join the Basketball club?” A girl with very short brown hair asks with a wide smile. I look from her to the boy next to her. He’s grinning, but it seems painful for him, like he isn’t used to smiling at all. 

I briefly glance at Kuroko and smile. “Yeah, could you hand me a sheet and a pen?” 

She scrambles to give me the items. I hastily fill them out, wanting to get out of the crowded area. 

“Come to the gym after classes today, that’s where we’ll be meeting.” The boy with the glasses next to her says when I hand the form back to them. I nod, my gold eyes make contact with Kuroko and we walk towards our classroom. 

“Kinjo-san?” Kuroko pipes up when we get in the building. 

I hum in response, we take to the stairs. 

“Why didn’t you tell them I was there?” 

I cling to the railing a bit, carefully watching my steps as we climb. “If you didn’t want them to know you were there in the first place who am I to spoil that?” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I looked up the last name Kinjo in Japanese and it translated to Gold Castle, just in case anyone was curious about his last name.


	2. First Practice

Classes go by quickly, and soon enough Kuroko and I walk to the gym together. When we get there, the girl from earlier, who I guess is actually the coach asks us all to stand in line and strip out of our shirts. It’s strange, but I can see that the look on her face is professional. 

When she gets to me, she seems to startle herself. I can almost see the trophies that appear in her eyes, like she just won a prize. 

She records her data and then calls out Kuroko’s name. 

That’s when Kuroko decides to make his presence known. 

Well, he tries. 

“I am here.” He says, right in front of her face, but she doesn’t even register it at all. He notices, and looks back at me with horror in his eyes. 

“Well, looks like he didn’t show up.” Coach Riko says in disappointment. 

“Coach!” I say loudly, drawing all the attention in the gym to me. Once I know I have all their eyes, I put a hand on Kuroko’s shoulder. “He’s right here.” 

Everyone around us screams. 

“WHERE DID YOU COME FROM?” Coach Riko shouts, her face pale. 

“I was here the whole time.” Kuroko deadpans. 

“He’s telling the truth,” I corroborate, gaining all the looks of confusion. “We have the same class, so we walked down here together. He really has been here the entire time.” 

  
  
  


The practice moves on from that point, and we get split up into a game of first years versus second years. Kuroko’s on the bench and I’m out on the court first. 

It becomes very annoying when all of my teammates keep passing to me. I’m new to Basketball. Like brand new. So my dribbling, and shooting are virtually non-existent. 

Maybe I should just let myself Flow, and see how that turns out? Yeah, testing out Flow in a new sport is a good goal for now.

I take a few calming breaths, and then when one of my teammates shouts my name, I feel myself fall into this familiar space. I move, I don’t think much. I read and react to those around me, weaving between people, and jumping to make several layups to the basket. I’ve scored about 20 points by the time a whistle is blown and the teams switch up a bit. 

The score, which starts out even in the second half, gets blown open by the regulars taking the court against us first years. 

We get a time out, and Kuroko finally gets subbed in. 

“What are we going to do? What was she thinking, having us play four on five against the regulars, this coach is crazy!” One of my teammates says. 

I roll my eyes and put my hand on Kuroko’s shoulder again. Luckily, the other three don’t scream, but they do jump when they notice the blue haired boy. 

“Please pass me the ball whenever possible.” Kuroko states, and I grin. He must have something up his sleeve. 

The game resumes, and I watch with glee as Kuroko runs around the court, directing passes to peoples hands. They don’t know where the ball came from, and while that freaks them out, I find myself maniacally grinning at the display. 

When the regulars have the ball and race towards our basket, Kuroko jogs near me. “Please run to the other side of the court, I’ll get the ball to you.” 

That’s all he says before weaving around people. I hear all the yells of confusion for why I’m at the other end of the court when the ball rockets from Kuroko to me. I go for the layup with no one to stop me. 


	3. A Deal is Made

When the game is over, we’re all free to go. I wait for Kuroko and we start walking together. We end up at this place called Maji Burger. I’m not particularly hungry, so I watch from a chair by a window while Kuroko gets a drink of some sort. 

He comes over and sits down, a smile in his eyes. 

“What do you have there?” 

“A vanilla milkshake.” 

I nod, looking out the window for a moment. I enjoy the quiet we share, but I have a few things I need to talk about. 

“Hey, do you think my presence completely overwhelms yours?” I ask.

He slurps his milkshake. “That seems like the most likely possibility. I can say that I’ve never had someone fail to notice me when I was as close to Riko-san as I was today.” 

“Am I going to have to hang all over you until the team gets used to your presence? I don’t want to make you uncomfortable, but I also don’t want people to forget that you’re there.” 

He raises an eyebrow. “While not the most comfortable option, I believe that that’s going to be the only way for our team to learn how to see me.” 

I scrunch my nose. “Why can’t people be more observant.” I groan in exasperation. 

“Wishful thinking will get you nowhere Kinjo-kun.” Another sip of milkshake. “I have a question for you, if you would indulge me.” 

I nod, my full attention on my table mate. 

“Did you by chance enter The Zone during the practice game?” He’s eyeing me critically. 

“The Zone?” I question before I recognize what he means. “Oh you mean Flow State? Yeah, anyone can do it, why?” 

“I was under the impression that only a few people could enter it, and those people are extraordinary.” 

I nod. “That’s what the general population is familiar with when anyone refers to The Zone. It’s complicated, but when you know the conditions that must be met, and how to trigger yourself, anyone can enter ‘The Zone’ as you call it.” 

I pause to look over his expression. His eyes are wide, and curiosity basically seeps out of his pores. So I indulge him with more information. 

“‘The Zone’,' is a slang term for Flow State of Mind. It’s the point where you are most productive while doing an activity and enjoying it to the fullest amount possible. I used to play baseball for years, and I had some pretty bad slumps, so when I found the term in a book, I dived deep into it. I trained myself to be able to enter Flow State whenever I want. The three main things you have to have are a clear goal, the ability to focus for long periods of time, and the ability to drown out your surroundings.” 

“Is that all?” Kuroko leans forward in his seat. 

I shake my head. “That’s just the basics, I can explain the rest to you some other time if you want?” I offer. 

“Please?” 

I nod, and then silence falls between us. We stare at each other for a bit before Kuroko breaks that silence. 

“Why’d you quit Baseball?” 

“It felt more like a job than a game that I played for fun.”

“I know how it feels to hate something you once loved. I'm getting back to loving Basketball after hating it last year. My old middle school teammates, they only play to win, but I’d much rather have fun.” 

I hum at the slightly bitter tone. “Sounds like you have some bad blood between you guys.” 

“If that’s what you wish to call it Kinjo-kun. I think of it more as disagreeing with their play style, and wanting to prove to them that my way to play is better.” 

It’s the first time that I’ve seen this fire in Kuroko’s eyes. It’s passion, burning brightly in his soul. I really don’t understand how people look over this guy so easily. He’s practically blinding. 

“Kinjo-kun, I want to make you the best basketball player in Japan. Would you help me defeat the Generation of Miracles?” 

I chuckle. “I don’t know about the best player in Japan, but I’ll definitely help you defeat the Miracles.” 

He tilts his head. “What’s not to understand? You’ll be the Light, and I’ll be the Shadow making the Light even brighter.” 

Light and Shadow? I already have enough eyes on me, and he wants to make me even more noticeable? He’s crazy. That's when an idea flashes in my mind.

“Kuroko, no one can see you when I’m in the same room. How about instead of Light and Shadow, I’m the Decoy luring people in, and you’re sneaking by them as the Attack?” 

He looks at me as if I’m crazy. “Kinjo-kun, I can’t shoot. I can’t be the Attack.” 

“Well, have you ever been taught how to?” 

He’s silent, and then he looks out the window with a light blush on his pale cheeks. 

“I’ll teach you how to shoot. We’ll learn together actually, I can’t shoot either.” I grin, a full teeth exposing smile. 

“Ah, I forget that you’ve never played Basketball before.” 

“I’ll teach you how to enter ‘The Zone’ at the same time, it’ll probably quadruple our productivity.” I draw out the slang name, mainly to make light of it, but I know I have him hooked. “Let’s go find a street court and have a little one on one. We can start by just getting used to how each other plays.”


	4. A Different Perspective

The street court is blissfully empty when we arrive. Kuroko finds a ball that’s just laying in the corner of the place, and we start our little game. It’s clear that Kuroko has more experience than me, but his form looks all sorts of uncomfortable. I keep silent for a bit as we go back and forth. 

Kuroko goes to shoot the ball, and I see his body in a position that doesn’t look right at all. He’s off balance, and his hands are positioned weirdly on the ball as well. The ball sails through the air, but it comes short of the net, and about five feet off to the right. 

I go retrieve the ball, and when I turn back I see his fists clenched. His knuckles are white, and while I can’t see his face I know that he’s definitely frustrated. 

Tucking the ball under my arm, I walk over calmly. 

“Hey Kuroko, how many times have you tried to change how you shoot the ball?” 

“This is the tenth form that I’ve tried.” He bites out, all the irritation in his voice but his face remains carefully blank. 

“Alright, have you ever tried mixing and matching between those ten forms?” I dribble the ball lightly, the ‘thud, thud, thud’ repeating over and over in my head. 

“Mix… and match?” 

I smile, and hold the ball towards him. “Yeah! Think of it like taking different parts of different forms and putting them together to create a form that works for you. Like if your body feels more comfortable standing a certain way with one form, and your hands feel comfortable with a different one, put them together and try it out.” 

He looks at the ball for a moment before sliding into a stance at the free throw line. His arms are close to his body, and his feet are also very close together. He goes into motion, me standing in front of him. The ball seemingly vanishes in mid air, and while it doesn’t go in, it hits the rim of the basket. 

The look of awe on his face is encouraging. So we spend about half an hour just tweaking his form before he hands the ball to me. 

“Your turn Kinjo-kun.” The peace that’s settled on his face makes me extremely happy. I set my feet shoulder width apart, bending my knees less than I would for a ready position in Baseball. My hands don’t really know what to do. 

“Could you help me set my hands? I’m right handed if that means anything.” 

Kuroko looks a tad shocked, but nonetheless he comes over in front of me. He moves my right hand behind the ball and my left hand to the side. “This should help.” 

He backs away, and I get ready to shoot. My arms flex, and my legs straighten as I go through the motion that feels right. The ball shoots sharply out of my hand, so hard that when it hits the rim it comes back and hits me in the face. 

I stumble back, falling to the ground and clutching at my forehead. Tears well up, but they don’t fall. A hand grabs one of my wrists and pulls it away from my face. Kuroko looks like he’s trying not to laugh, but he’s still concerned about my safety at the same time. His lips are in a thin line and his cheeks are getting very red. 

“In case you’re wondering, this is about par for the course when it comes to me learning.” I mutter grumpily. 

That causes Kuroko to break, and a tinkling laugh fills the air. 


	5. Blondie

Kuroko and I spend the next week going to the street court after practice. He hasn’t noticed yet, but I’ve started the foundations for him to enter ‘The Zone’. A repeated routine, the same music playing from my bluetooth speaker, and stating a goal we want to work towards during each little practice session. 

Friday rolls around, and I convince Kuroko to start working on this stuff during practice as well. Our team is also getting used to Kuroko as well. They’ve started including him more during drills because they can actually see him now on the court. 

However, when we do intersquad games and Kuroko and I are on the same team, our decoy and attack strategy works like a well oiled machine. The nature of our presences should not mix at all, but we’ve found a balance that we’re working on smoothing out. We have miscues of course, but they are slowly getting ironed out. 

This practice feels a bit different though. Coach Riko steps out to take a call and then comes back into the gym skipping. 

Hyuuga-senpai and Izuki-senpai groan in unison. This causes the rest of us first years to look on in confusion. 

“She only gets like this when we’re going to play a tough opponent.” 

Before she can actually tell us the news though, screams come from the doors to the gym. In walks a tall blonde with girls all around him, shouting for photos and signatures. However, that quickly changes when the girls notice my presence. 

Some of them start shouting at me with heart eyes, and others of the group start shouting at those girls for being traitors to their “Kise-kun”. 

Luckily, this Kise guy manages to calm them down and get them out of the gym. He turns to us with a camera smile. 

“Ah this is Seirin? Where’s Kurokocchi?” 

I look over to the blue head, and watch as he walks up to the blonde. 

Completely ignoring Kuroko, the blonde locks eyes with me instead. He strides over, Kuroko avoiding making contact with him. The guy looks me up and down with a critical gaze, and it’s at that moment that I decide I need to fuck with this guy hard core. 

“You! Tell me where you’re hiding Kurokocchi. I need to take him with me to play at Kaijou.” 

The comment about Kaijou gets some murmurs from the rest of my team. 

“Kurokocchi? Ah you must mean Tet-kun, I think you’ll find him if you actually look.” 

The blonde seems a bit taken aback by my words. He starts looking around wildly, all the while Kuroko is slowly gaining a tick mark standing right next to him. I feel the smirk growing on my lips, and when the blonde catches my eyes he stops. Those yellow eyes narrow, and he actually reaches forward to grab the collar of my practice shirt. 

“You’ve done something to Kurokocchi, haven’t you?!” He accuses, and that’s when Kuroko decides to make his presence known with a vicious chop to the blonde’s ribs. 

I’m released, and the blonde takes a few steps back in pain and shock. 

“K-kurokocchi?” He huffs out, breath not easily coming back to his lungs. 

“I know I can still affect you with my low presence Kise-kun, but you should’ve been able to see me standing next to you, even after all this time apart.” Kuroko ruefully says, his eyes guarded. 

The now identified Kise, looks at him in confusion for a moment before he shouts the nickname he’s been using and attacks Kuroko with a hug. That only earns him a punch to the gut. 

“So mean, Kurokocchi!” He complains, but switches gears quickly. “What do you say? No one here can use your skills effectively. Come with me to Kaijou.” 

“No, Kise-kun. I’m staying with Seirin.” Kuroko deadpans, shutting the blonde down. 

Kise glances back over to me. His face changes back to that camera smile, so fake. 

“Is this your new Light? He doesn’t seem like much.” 

Time to mess around. I shrug, the smirk still on my face. “I’m really nothing special, but Tet-kun and I get along  _ just fine _ .” I purposefully purr the last two words, knowing the implications that could be construed from them. 

I get a raised eyebrow from Kuroko, but nothing more. Kise, it seems, lets his mind run wild with ideas about the meaning behind my words. He glares at me fiercely, but nothing compared to  _ his  _ glare. 

“How about a little one on one then?” 

I laugh outright at his challenge. “That’s not my style, sorry to disappoint.” I end with a shrug, and the blonde fumes. 

Then he tamps down his anger, and smooths a smirk over his own face. “I’ll get to play you soon enough. We have a practice game against you next week, I just came to see Kurokocchi anyhow. Ciao.” He waves as he exits the gym. 

“We’re playing Kaijou?!” Hyuuga-senpai turns on Coach Riko for answers. 

“Yup! I just got off the phone with their coach about setting up a practice match. That’s what I came back to tell you all before that guy came in. Speaking of Kuroko, who was that exactly?” 

“That was Kise Ryouta, the Copy Cat of the Generation of Miracles.” 

Alright, so with a name like that I can expect something similar to the Sharingan from Naruto. I think this to myself while Kuroko goes on to explain his old teammates abilities, well just a basic overview of it. 


	6. A Breakthrough

After practice, we go to our usual street court. This time, instead of immediately working on our moves, I wave Kuroko over to me. 

“I think you’re ready to learn the next step when it comes to entering ‘The Zone’.” No need to beat around the bush at this point. “We’ve established a routine that’s made it easier for you to block out the world and solely focus on a singular task. Now, it’s time to be confident with your new skills.” 

Kuroko just stares at me. 

Tossing the ball to him, I get in a defensive stance. “One on one, first to ten wins.” 

He dribbles the ball. He’s in control of it, and his posture changes ever so slightly. He drives forward, and manages to disappear from in front of me. A Vanishing Drive, which he follows up with a simple layup that he’s mastered over the week. 

I go get the ball, and sprint to the other end of the court. Kuroko gets in front of me, so I stop and smile widely. I slip into Flow State easily, and get around him with a simple fake. 

My goal right now isn’t to win, it’s to make Kuroko enter Flow State. I keep pressure on him as our scores go back and forth. 

It’s when we’re tied, 9-9 that I see his posture shift slightly again. He goes to drive by me, but I block him. He tries again to the right, then the left, but I stay with the blue haired teen. We’re slowly making our way towards his net, when I see the ball bounce, but it doesn’t make a sound. My attention gets pulled to the ground, and I’m suddenly on my knees as Kuroko rushes past me and shoots from the free throw line. 

When the ball gets through the hoop and falls to the ground, I’m shocked back into reality. 

Looking over Kuroko now, this seemingly blue hazy aura is surrounding him, and his eyes are sparking with electricity. His body seems to be in perpetual motion, like waves crashing against the shore. He found it. 

“Good job.” I say, and his eyes find mine. 

“That… was The Zone?” He mumbles in wonder, coming out of his trance.   
  
I nod, a grin on my lips. “I don’t know how you did it, but what you managed to do was misdirect not only my eyes, but my ears as well. It looked like the ball bounced but there was no sound. My eyes got pulled to where the ball was, and my body got twisted when the lack of sound happened.” 

Kuroko looks at me quizzically. “All I did was let the ball drop, but crossed over before it hit the ground. I’m not sure how you didn’t hear it. Maybe because I bounced it through my legs and my body blocked the sound?” 

I laugh, and then clasp my hand on his shoulder. I’m a little bit taller than him, but not by much. He doesn’t have to crane his neck to look up at me. 

“Doesn’t matter, just know that you’re able to do it again.” I grab the ball that was laying by his feet. “So now that you’ve been in ‘The Zone’, we can practice extending your time, as well as polishing and expanding your base skills. If we do both at the same time, then we’ll be able to gain our skills quickly.” 

Kuroko stares at me skeptically. “Is it really that simple Kinjo-kun?” 

“Yup! People tend to treat Flow State as a game only scenario. If you train yourself while in Flow State, then that just means your current goal is to get better. Everyone tries to complicate it, but all it is is a super focus skill.” 

We get to work. Kuroko manages to stay in ‘The Zone’ for a solid ten minutes before losing focus. While he takes a break, I continue to work on dribbling. I know my speed is valuable, and if I can combine that with my fast hands, and have a superior control of the ball, then I’ll be an extremely difficult opponent. 

I’m brought out of my Flow State when Kuroko asks me a question. 

“How are you able to easily slip in and out of The Zone without any repercussions? Kinjo-kun is able to stay in The Zone for a very long time.” 

I laugh quite heartily. His growing frustration and confusion lets me tamp it down though. “I played Baseball, and Baseball games can go on for upwards of three hours. The longest I’ve ever stayed in Flow State is probably around four and a half hours. Our game went into extra innings, and it was a back and forth struggle. My team and I, we ended up losing that game. It would take several Basketball games in a row for me to run out of focus and fall out of Flow State.” 

“That doesn’t explain why you don’t have any side effects from using The Zone.” Kuroko argues in his blank, monotone voice. 

“I’ve never said that I don’t get any injuries or side effects, only that it takes a lot for me to reach that point. My body knows how much it can take, as I try to stay as aware of my body as possible. The moment I lose that awareness, that’s when I slip up and get injured.” 

He accepts my answer, and then stands up and gets in a defensive position in front of me. 

“My captain from Teiko, Akashi Seijuurou, he’s known for using ankle breaks relentlessly on his opponents. If you’re going to work on dribbling, make ankle breaks one of your goals.” 


	7. So That's Why

I get home and immediately start making myself some scrambled eggs. It’s a quick and easy meal, and full of protein which I need. While I’m taller than Kuroko, we are both fairly thin, so putting on some muscle is pretty important.

The silence of my apartment is still a bit eerie to me, but I’d rather have it over living with _him_. 

I finish cooking my eggs, and go to sit down in my living room where my laptop is connected to the TV. Going to Youtube and looking up videos on Basketball skills is simple, and as I’m a visual learner, it’s a great tool for me. I look up a video on the specifics of ankle breaking and take a quick picture of the screen before texting it to Kuroko. 

It doesn’t take more than a minute before he texts me back. 

Kuroko: I’m glad you’re taking my advice seriously Kinjo-kun.

Kuroko: Also, I didn’t get the chance to ask earlier, but what was that with Kise-kun today?

I think back to the encounter, and specifically the raised eyebrows I got at my little nickname for Kuroko. 

Me: Aaaahhh I really wanted to mess with him

Me: Figured he’s the type to overreact to anything that can be taken the wrong way

Me: That and I didn’t want to give him any satisfaction

The video goes into detail about the use of speed and feints to get the defender off balance. I watch the ball quickly move in front of the player, side to side, a lunge and a pivot, and then the defender falling to the ground. It looks very satisfying to be honest. My phone lights up. 

Kuroko: And the name? 

I smile a bit shyly, even though this conversation is through text I can’t help but be a bit bashful. 

Me: Dramatic effect?

Kuroko: Is that a question Kinjo-kun?

I snort. 

Me: Oh shut up! Don’t think I don’t see that you have a mischievous side

Kuroko: You may call me that if you wish Kinjo-kun

Me: Only if you use my given name or a variation of it as well

Kuroko: But it is far too soon for me to call you so formally Kinjo-kun

Me: Do you want me to call you Tet-kun, Kuroko?

I decide to call him out. He must know that his last text is a bit hypocritical, telling me I can call him that nickname, but saying it’s too soon for him to give me a nickname because of formality. 

Kuroko: I would not be opposed to it

Me: Then why are you opposed to me asking the same of you? Give me a nickname and call me by it 

I swear this feels like pulling teeth. I type something else, not giving him time to reply. 

Me: I’ll call you Tet-kun when you give me a nickname, otherwise it’s reserved for when I’m messing with your old teammates

Kuroko: Fair

That night I end up diving down a rabbit hole on Youtube and find myself watching a video of Teiko Middle School’s Basketball club. In the video, I notice Kuroko on the bench with what seems to be bandages wrapped around his head. The score racks up quickly. The other team, Meiko, they don’t even bother to try and defend against Teiko. It’s a complete slaughter with zero class or respect for their opponent, or even any respect for Basketball. The score ends 111-11, and I find myself thoroughly disgusted with the Generation of Miracles. 

Me: Your old teammates are assholes 

I send it to Kuroko before I go to sleep at 2am.

When I get into class the next morning, I spy Kuroko staring down at his phone in contemplation. Sitting down, I turn around and look at him. He finally glances up at me with a frown. 

“What did you mean with your text?” 

I scrunch my nose up. 

“I found a video of one of your middle school games, it was against Meiko.” I don’t need to say anything else because Kuroko’s face goes from panic to carefully blank. 

“My childhood friend was on the Meiko team. He quit Basketball after that game.” His grim tone only furthers my disgust with the overpowered Basketball players. 

“You didn’t play, you didn’t have any control over the outcome. It’s solely on all of them for that level of disrespect towards the other players and the game itself.” I say, my conviction in my words almost shocking me a bit. 

I’ve just joined the world of Basketball, leaving one sport behind for another. The one thing with sports is the need to respect your opponent and the game itself, otherwise you’re just a farce of what a great player should be. I have so much to learn about Basketball, but this is one thing that I don’t need to be taught. 

“I could’ve prevented it though.” Kuroko starts, and I can virtually see the spiral about to happen. 

I reach over the desk and grab his hand. He goes quiet. 

“You are not omnipotent. You are human. It does not do to dwell on the past when you can change the present.” 

“Those are some wise words Kinjo-kun.” Kuroko quietly mutters, a small sign of acceptance.

“Pretty sure I either stole it from a philosopher or an author of some sort.” I say with a grin. It gains me a small chuckle and a soft smile from my friend. 


	8. Oh Boy

The rest of that week, working towards the practice game with Kaijou, Coach Riko runs us into the ground. We have two styles of play to work with, one utilizing Kuroko’s Misdirection and my own presence, and a Run and Gun style where everyone races ahead on the court to rush our opponents. I’m able to play both styles, but I have to admit that I love Misdirection quite a bit. 

I think I’ll be able to get better at the Run and Gun when I become more proficient with shooting and dribbling. Flow State is helping me for sure, and I’ve been able to test more things out as I get comfortable with the sport and the feelings that go through me. It’s different from the quiet endurance that Baseball has. Flow State with Basketball is loud, and in your face, and challenging in a way that I haven’t been challenged for a long while. 

Kuroko also makes some progress with his Flow State. It’s like watching an ocean, one moment it is calm, moving around easily with nothing in his way, and the next moment he is all roaring waves that are crashing against the defenders, blowing by them, and scoring points as easily as breathing. 

He’s quite a sight to see. It’s awe inspiring to watch him do his Phantom Crossover, sending our teammates to their knees as they get thrown forward trying to follow the ball. It’s his own version of an ankle break, but its distinct difference is noticeable from the ankle breaks I’ve seen in Youtube videos. 

It’s just after practice ends the day before the Kaijou game that I’m pulled aside by Coach Riko. 

“How did you do it?” She asks me with narrowed eyes. 

I raise an eyebrow. “Do what exactly?” 

“How did you get Kuroko’s abilities to improve exponentially when he was already basically at his full potential?” She questions with a tone of exasperation mixed with urgency. 

“Ah,” I begin, a sly smirk forming on my lips, “I taught him how to use Flow State, or I guess you would call it ‘The Zone’.” 

By the way her eyes widen, she definitely recognizes the term. Then she smacks herself in the forehead. I watch as she turns to the wall and starts banging her head against it. 

“Uh, Coach?” 

“Of course! I should’ve known, you use The Zone all the time.” She turns on me, a crazy look in her eye. “You’ve mastered The Zone, haven’t you?” 

I hold up a finger. “I’ve mastered how to  _ enter _ ‘The Zone’, you can’t master ‘The Zone’ itself. But, it’s really quite easy to enter it when you know the criteria.” 

She rubs her chin, looking between me and the gym. “Think you’d be able to teach the rest of the team how to enter?” 

A whole team going into Flow State? That’s almost unheard of. It’s crazy. Ludicrous. Insane. But, it’s one hell of a skill we can weaponize if we manage to get it.

“I’ll try to teach them. I can’t guarantee anything, but I can try.” 

“That’s all I ask Kinjo-kun.”


	9. Seirin Vs. Kaijou Pt. 1

It’s game day. 

When we step off the bus, it’s clear where all the money goes to at this school. 

“Looks like they really love their sports programs,” Hyuuga-senpai snarks. 

“Kurokocchi!” Is what I hear when getting off the bus. Kuroko had gotten off before me, so it’s easy for Kise to spot Kuroko. 

They talk to each other, and eventually we get to the gym where only half of it is available for use, the other half being taken as a practice area for the rest of Kaijou’s Basketball team. The half court looks a bit neglected if the rusty bolts on the basket are anything to go by. 

I miss Kaijou’s coach completely dissing our team, as my attention gets drawn to all the new sights around me. 

I do hear Kise encourage us to completely shut down his team just so he could play against Kuroko. 

I walk up to the teal haired teen as the blonde walks away. “So what are our odds against him?” 

Kuroko glances at me, and then back to Kise who is currently getting a fist to his ribs. “Without The Zone, us working together should be enough to beat him.” 

I smirk. “I like those odds. You ready?” 

“Of course. We shouldn’t show anything too flashy today. Kise-kun will just copy it.” He tacks on at the end of his sentence, and I can tell from his tone that he’s very serious. 

“So should I not enter Flow State?”

“I’d say no, unless he enters The Zone first. Then you have my permission.” He nods sagely, face still blank. 

My laughter echoes in the gym, and all eyes get pulled to my person. I know my grin is a bit savage as Kuroko’s lip quirks up just slightly. 

“If you have the confidence in us all that we can take them on without it, who am I to say otherwise.” 

I stand next to Hyuuga-senpai as we line up before our game on this half court starts. Next to him is Izuki-senpai, and Mitobe-senpai, and on the end is Kuroko. The purpose of this is so the referee can actually see that we have five players on the court to begin with, and the other team doesn’t have any inclination to the fuckery that’s about to go on. 

The game starts and Hyuuga-senpai passes the ball to Izuki-senpai. I run up the court, getting just inside the paint and call for the ball. Three of the defenders turn their heads to see me virtually open and rush to cover. At that moment, Izuki-senpai passes the ball, and Kuroko redirects it to Hyuuga-senpai who is completely open. He shoots and lands a three pointer to begin the game. 

I don’t hear any exclamations of how the ball appeared out of nowhere. In fact, Kaijou doesn’t even realize that the pass went to someone else before it landed in Hyuuga-senpai’s hands. My smirk is wide, and it seems that our Decoy and Attack strategy is going to work well. 

Over the next few minutes, we rack up around 24 points while Kaijou has only scored 10. It’s as Mitobe-senpai is passed the ball and goes for a dunk when the game significantly changes. He follows through the dunk and the rim comes with him, completely breaking off the backboard. 

I take the moment to draw attention to myself. “Ah, it seems we’ll have to play a full court after all.” 

I know my tone is mocking, and the smug look I throw at the Kaijou coach earns me a smirk from Coach Riko. It also earns me a chop to the ribs from Kuroko. 

“Kinjo-kun should watch the way he talks to coaches.” 

I halfheartedly glare at my teammate. “And Kuroko should practice what he preaches.” 

“I don’t know what you are talking about, I am very polite.” He crosses his arms, and almost pouts. 

“Yes, your polite rudeness is a sight to behold, not any different from what I just said.” I say it so only he hears me. I’m lucky enough that he graces me with an exaggerated eye roll. 


	10. Seirin Vs. Kaijou Pt. 2

When we get set up for a full court game, Kise is put into the lineup. 

“Things are going to be interesting from here on out, I take it?” I say more to myself than anyone else, but like usual, everyone on the court hears my comment. 

Kise walks over to me, acting as my mark. His smirk is wide, and particularly vicious. “So I finally get to see Kurokocchi’s new Light for myself.” 

The ball gets thrown in, and Kuroko passes to me. I dribble the ball, and make sure that I hold eye contact with the blonde. Our eyes are sort of the same color, I notice absentmindedly, and make a pass to Hyuuga-senpai. Kise is so busy focusing on me that he doesn’t even know that I’ve passed the ball until one of his teammates, I’m guessing the captain, yells out to the blonde. 

By the time Kise wrenches his eyes off of me, my captain has already sunk his shot, and the ball is back in Kaijou’s possession. Kise receives the ball, and immediately goes to rush past me. 

I block him pretty effectively. He smirks again, but I also see Kuroko creeping around behind the blonde. Quickly, I take a step back at the same time Kise goes back and tries to go into a shooting position. Key word: Tries. 

Kuroko pushes the ball from Kise’s grip into my hand and I rush by the blonde before he has time to recover. Since he was the farthest out of his team, I am running up on the basket solo. Unfortunately I do not have the height, or the jumping power to dunk just yet, so I go for a simple lay up, an air of nonchalance flowing around me. 

The rest of the first half follows this pattern of scoring, and the numbers read 40-25. 

Given, almost all of the points Kaijou has scored have been from their captain and this guy who uses a granny toss, which I guess they call an unorthodox shot here in Japan. We’ve effectively shut Kise down. 

It’s when we are in the locker room that Kuroko decides to throw a curveball. 

“Coach, I am afraid I can only play one more quarter before my Misdirection wears off.” 

Our entire team, myself included, shout “WHAT?!” 

“Kuroko, explain.” Coach Riko grinds out. 

“I have fairly low stamina, and while this game has been easier on me than in middle school, I know my stamina has not improved by much.” 

Oh, I see. I have to speak up now. 

“Um, Kuroko, you know that I’m using Misdirection as well, right?” 

All eyes latch onto my figure. 

“Pardon, Kinjo-kun?” Kuroko’s eyes are wide, even though his face is blank. 

“My Misdirection consists of pulling all the attention on the court to me to distract from what is actually happening with the ball. Your Misdirection works by having all the attention directed away from you so you can make things happen with the ball without anyone noticing. Our styles work in tandem Kuroko, I thought you would’ve picked up on that by now. If you are getting a little tired with your style, let me pick up the slack. This is what I meant when I said I'm the Decoy and you’re the Attack.” 

The locker room goes quiet before Hyuuga-senpai shouts. 

“Holy Shit! That’s why it’s so impossible to read you two on the court?” 

I blink owlishly and tilt my head to the side, Kuroko mimicking me as well. 

Hyuuga-senpai blushes at his outburst but quickly recovers. 

“Anyways, what do you mean by picking up the slack?” 

“Yes, that would be pretty vital information to know.” Coach Riko snarks, and I sheepishly scratch the back of my head. 

“Well, I’m going to get real loud and real annoying. While the other team is wondering where the hell my attitude change came from, you’ll all be able to move around pretty freely.” 

Looks of recognition and understanding spread across the room. I’ve employed the same tactic against them in practice before. 

“Ah, your Mood Swing.” Kuroko says aloud, and everyone nods in unison. 

My shoulders slump a bit. “Is that really what it’s going to be called? Can’t it just be Misdirection 2.0, or something?” 

Coach Riko claps her hands together. “Alright, so while we’re planning out Kinjo’s Mood Swing, Kaijou is going to try to come at us in a different way as well. We’ve shut Kise down so far, and even with what he’s copied from us, he hasn’t been much of a threat. We can expect him to step up his play in this next half.” 

  
  
  
  


Coach Riko’s words come true as Kaijou starts with the ball in the beginning of the third quarter. He breaks past our defense and quickly jams a dunk over Mitobe-senpai. When Izuki-senpai passes the ball to me, I start talking. 

“Man, this game is super exciting. I’m going against one of the best clubs in Japan. And we’re in the lead right now, who would’ve thought, afterall, I never picked up a basketball till three weeks ago.” 

As I’m talking, I feel some eyes, but all ears open to my words. Kise is marking me as I dribble, and he blocks me several times. It’s when I say my last sentence that I bounce a pass to Kuroko who squeaks by unnoticed while my words sink into everyone’s brains. 

“T-three weeks ago?” Kise stutters, a brief look of horror passes through his eyes, and then he sees that I’m not in possession of the ball either. 

At this point, Kuroko is making a layup with no one even paying attention to the cyan haired teen aside from the scorekeeper who puts points on the board for Seirin. 

When Kise gets the ball, I start talking again. 

“Me and Tet-kun were talking the other day, especially after I watched a few of your old Teiko games. He always mentions this guy who didn’t understand the concept of personal space. Well, that’s also Japan’s standard of personal space. I’m from America and we like to hug each other frequently. If you ever need a hug, I’m always willing to give you one.” 

The utter look of confusion on his face is beautiful as he unconsciously brings his hand forward while dribbling. I keep eye contact, and manage to smack the ball to Izuki-senpai who takes it back down the court, passing it on to Hyuuga-senpai who makes a three pointer. 

Kise shakes his head, and continues on with the game. As the final minutes of the third quarter go on, Kaijou has caught up a decent amount. The score is now 67-60 in our favor, so instead of playing up the shock factor, I start shouting for the ball. Even when I’m not open, I say that I am. Izuki-senpai’s eyes are good enough to where he can make his own decisions and ignore my booming voice. 

We get a small break before the last quarter, and as we huddle up, I notice that Kuroko is looking at his hands in confusion. I nudge him with my elbow. 

“Ah Kinjo-kun, don’t mind me.” 

“You sure? You look mildly concerned about something.” 

“No. However, I am thinking about how we can use my Misdirection and your Mood Swing at the same time.” 

I laugh, drawing the attention of our team as we huddle up. “It’d be pure chaos.” 

“What?” Hyuuga-senpai demands. 

“Us using our techniques at the same time in full force. We’ve unknowingly practiced a minor version of it during practice, but using it to the full potential will be something else entirely. You’ll have to focus on remembering Kuroko while ignoring me a majority of the time.” 

“Kinjo-kun is not hard to ignore once you know how to.” Kuroko speaks. 

I roll my eyes. “And Kuroko is not hard to see when you actually use your eyes.” 

Play begins, and we have the ball. When the ball gets passed to me, I start talking again. Kise goes stone faced, but it goes to surprise when Kuroko steals the ball from me and rushes past the blonde. When this happens, I do the same on his other side, setting myself up just outside the basket. 

Kuroko passes to Izuki-senpai, who passes to what looks to be a Kaijou player only for Kuroko to direct the pass to me instead. I’m already jumping for the layup and the ball nestles snuggly in my hand before I let it roll off the tips of my fingers and let it find its way into the basket. 

Kise retaliates by copying my layup several times, his team helping him out with their passing, but they also score their own shots. 

The final quarter becomes a back and forth match. It comes down to the final five seconds. Kaijou has just tied the game up. I see Kuroko, and I rush to the other end of the court. Kuroko unleashes an Ignite Pass to me, and I score just before the buzzer that signals the end of the game. The score 98-96 in favor of Seirin. 


	11. Hugs and Sharpies

Kuroko heads to the bathroom, and I wait outside the gym for him as the rest of our team heads to the bus. As I’m standing outside, I hear what seems to be stifled crying. I walk around the corner, and there sitting against the wall is Kise with tears threatening to roll down his face. 

I crouch down so I’m level with his face. 

“Have you come here to gloat?” He spits venomously. 

Solemnly, I shake my head. “You know, what I said on the court about being open for a hug. I wasn’t lying.” 

“Why in the world would I want to hug you? You just beat me.” 

“That’s fair. It isn’t going to stop me from offering you comfort though. Just because your team lost doesn’t mean the world is going to end.” 

He narrows his eyes at me. Kise reads my face, and I truly hope that my expression conveys just how genuine I am. He must find whatever he is looking for because suddenly I have my arms filled with the blonde teen. 

He buries his head into the crook of my neck and sobs. I tighten my hold and rub his back, not saying anything while he lets his tears out. We stay like this for a few minutes before I hear a familiar voice. 

“Am I interrupting anything Kinjo-kun, Kise-kun?” 

He has a faint smile on his lips. Kise springs out of my embrace like I’m on fire, but then latches himself onto Kuroko. 

“Kurokocchi! Kinjocchi is so kind! He offered to give me hugs whenever I want them!” 

Kuroko chops Kise in the ribs, and the blonde lets him go. The bluenette raises an eyebrow in my direction. I shrug. 

“So mean, Kurokocchi!” 

“I see that Kise is still being an idiot.” A new voice appears. I look over to see a stern looking guy our age with green hair and glasses. He’s also holding a sharpie in his hand. 

“Midorimacchi! Why didn’t you say that you were coming? We could’ve planned something.” Kise pouts. 

“Nice to see you Midorima-kun.” Kuroko looks over at me. “This is my teammate Kinjo Yuya. Kinjo-kun, this is another one of my middle school teammates, Midorima Shintarou.” 

The green haired teen doesn’t hold a hand out to greet me, so I don’t do the same. He does critically look me over. 

“Birthday?” He asks suddenly. Oh! I know where this is going. 

“I’m a Libra, September 30th. What about you?” I smile brightly. 

It seems my response shocks not only him, but Kuroko and Kise as well. 

“July 7th, Cancer. Do you by chance know of Oha Asa?” 

“I don’t, is that where you get your horoscopes from? I normally use American sites but that’s just because I am from America.” I say conversationally. 

“Yes, Cancer is ranked seventh today, so I had to employ my lucky item to help further my luck. Unfortunately I still wasn’t able to see the entirety of your match today.” Midorima turns to Kuroko. “Libras are generally compatible with most of the signs, it looks like you might've found a competent choice for your new Light Kuroko, though that won't be enough to beat me.” 

Before anyone else can say anything, Fukuda runs over and calls for me and Kuroko to get on the bus. 

I hastily grab the sharpie from Midorima and write my number on his arm, and then on Kise’s before capping it and handing it back to the Cancer. 

“Hit me up sometime, both of you. Kuroko and I will see you around.” I say, grabbing Kuroko and rushing to our team. 

When we’re sitting on the bus, Kuroko raises an eyebrow at me. 

“What?” I say a bit defensively. 

“Why did you give them both your number?” If my ears don’t deceive me, Kuroko sounds a bit jealous. Well, I definitely need to rectify that. 

“I have the feeling that Kise would harass you for my number, so I saved you some trouble there. As for Midorima, I actually love talking about horoscopes, but in Japan, you all focus on blood types. I’m American, I can’t tell you my blood type, but I can tell you the star signs for all my old friends.” 

Kuroko’s blue eyes bore into my golden ones. Neither of us back off. 

“You’re the best friend that I have here Kuroko, I’m not going to ditch you for the assholes who hurt you.” I say softly. 

“Kinjo-kun would be just as bad as them if he did.” 

I nod, fully in agreement. That’s when something from earlier pops into my head. 

“Hey, why did both of them call me your Light? I know you talked about a Light and Shadow, but I didn’t realize it was a thing.” 

“They only have seen me play a supportive role, hence me being the Shadow to someone else’s Light. They assume that you are that Light.” 

I hum, resting my chin on my hand as I hunch over in my seat on the bus. “It’s kind of ironic now, isn’t it? We both play supportive roles, just in different ways, but I guess they don’t see it yet.” 

Kuroko nods. “I think Kise-kun will be able to see it when he watches our games now. Your presence is overwhelming and you shine just like a Light. After playing us, he’ll want to know how the ball got by him so many times, and while he may be an idiot a majority of the time, he has good Basketball sense.” 

A small silence crawls between us as the bus continues back to campus. It extends through our post game meeting and when we are dismissed. I look over at Kuroko and catch his eyes.

“Milkshakes?” 

“Milkshakes.” 

We head to Maji Burger and treat ourselves to vanilla and chocolate milkshakes respectively.


	12. One Step Forward, One Step Back

Monday gets interesting during practice. Coach Riko hands the reins over to me, and when I have everyone gathered around, I clear my throat. 

“Alright, as you guys know, I can enter Flow State, or as you may know it ‘The Zone’ fairly easily. What you guys don’t know is that you do not need to be a superstar player to enter ‘The Zone’.”

That gets me several wide eyes. 

“I didn’t pick up a Basketball till the first day we all met each other, so obviously talent is not a requirement to enter ‘The Zone’. The main requirements consist of having a clear goal, the ability to drown out your surroundings, and the ability to focus for long periods of time. We’re all going to work on entering ‘The Zone’, it only took me around two weeks to teach Kuroko how to enter, so I’m thinking that everyone should be able to do it in about a month. When we all reach ‘The Zone’, we can practice while in ‘The Zone’ as it is essentially a super focus skill. Being in ‘The Zone’ can quadruple your productivity. If we practice while in this state, our performance while playing will quadruple as well.” 

“So how do we start?” Izuki-senpai asks, clearly looking forward to it. 

I smile. “First, we have to establish a set routine while warming up, and this includes a music playlist. If everyone can pick one or two songs, then I can put a playlist together and we’ll play it every day during practice. Music helps drown out the world around you, and when games start up, the crowd will act as white noise.” 

  
  
  


Surprisingly, the first member of the team, aside from Kuroko and I, to enter Flow State is our fellow first year, Furihata Kouki. He accomplishes this while working with Izuki-senpai on point guard drills. He flies through it, gracefully moving between cones and dribbling like someone completely different when he goes against our teammate. 

This, in turn, sparks a fire within Izuki-senpai who retaliates with his own entrance into Flow State. He holds Furihata with a strong defense, and picks the correct time to knock the ball from the junior’s hand when Furihata attempts to pass him. 

Almost everyone is able to find Flow State after three weeks. Another surprise, although not a good one, comes by Hyuuga-senpai’s frustration at not being able to enter ‘The Zone’. 

Kuroko and I stay late, watching the captain sink three pointers, but still miss a good amount. The music is loud, and the dribble of the ball is hypnotic, but our captain can’t seem to fall into ‘The Zone’. 

“He has a routine, a clear goal, he can drown out everything around him, the only thing I can think of is that he can’t focus for long amounts of time.” I mutter to Kuroko. 

“Izuki-senpai mentioned during the Kaijou game that Captain Hyuuga has a mode he calls ‘Clutch Time’ where he gets more accurate with his shots, but he becomes more militant in return. Maybe that’s his own Zone?” Kuroko supplies. 

“Clutch Time? I know the feeling, and it’s slightly different. It’s very quick and only happens when it is needed, it’s not something you can train.”

“So his focus is the problem? It’s too short to enter The Zone?” 

I nod, and then turn the music off. That pulls Hyuuga-senpai’s attention towards the two of us on the bleachers. He clenches his hands, but walks over to us anyway. 

“You think too much.” I state bluntly, mimicking Kuroko pretty well with my deadpan tone. 

Whatever Hyuuga-senpai is about to say is derailed and he looks at me through a confused frown. 

“I  _ think _ too much? Of course I think a lot, you idiot! I’m the Captain of this team, I have to think about not only you players, but everyone’s grades, and other shit too!” He growls, and I spare a quick glance at Kuroko. 

“You need to relax and have trust in us as your teammates. When you’re able to do that, I think you’ll be able to enter ‘The Zone’.” 

I motion towards the door with my head, and Kuroko and I exit the gym. 


	13. A Nickname is Made

We walk on our usual route to Maji Burger, an easy silence between us. It’s when we sit down with our respective milkshakes that Kuroko addresses me. 

“I thought you said it was a focus issue that Captain Hyuuga was having.”

I slurp, the richness of the chocolate milkshake makes me hum. “It is a focus issue. He’s focusing too much on trying to keep us all in line. The second he’s able to let go, and play free of that worry he’ll enter Flow State.” 

Kuroko takes his own drink of his milkshake before replying. “Would a first year study group ease his worries? If we all have our grades up, then that’s one less thing to worry about.” 

I grin wildly. “Kuroko! You’re a genius!” 

Right after I high five the cyan haired teen, I hear a cry of “Kinjocchi!”, and then I am glomped. 

“Oh Kinjocchi! I’m so happy I found you. Senpai was being so mean to me today, and several fans started following me after practice but I lost them-” 

I manage to get my arms free and wrap them around Kise’s body. He freezes for a moment, but then sags into my embrace. 

“Ah Kise, you should’ve texted me that you wanted a hug.” 

I briefly glance at Kuroko, and the frown he is throwing at me is very threatening. I raise an eyebrow at his behavior, and when he catches my gaze, Kuroko blushes slightly then clears his throat. 

That’s enough to shock Kise out of my grip. The blonde looks over and smiles brightly at his old teammate. 

“Kurokocchi! You’re here too?” 

“Yes Kise-kun, Yu-kun and I were discussing something before you decided to throw yourself at him.” 

That grabs my attention. Kise shrinks back from me a bit, and hesitantly glances between the two of us. Oh, is Kuroko jealous? He made a nickname for me just to unbalance Kise. I’m curious. 

“Ah that’s right! Tet-kun and I were getting to something pretty important. Would you mind if we talk later, Kise?” I ask, my tone almost mimicking Kuroko’s politeness. Kise looks between us, and then nods. 

“Sure Kinjocchi! I got my hug, I’ll text you if I need another one!” He smiles brilliantly at us, and then waves goodbye as he walks out of the restaurant. 

I wait a good ten seconds after the blonde leaves before looking curiously at Kuroko. “Yu-kun?” 

While Kuroko’s face is blank, his cheeks are prickling with pink. It’s very endearing how he can keep such a straight face but express so much at the same time. 

“Yes. I hope it suffices as a nickname.” 

Avoiding the real reason it seems. I chuckle a bit and nod, deciding not to call him out on it. 

“It works just fine Tet-kun.” I pause for a sip of my drink. “Hey, do you think either of us can go one on one with any of the Miracles right now?” 

He hums, drinking his own shake. His eyebrows furrow a bit while he’s thinking over his answer. “Right now? I believe that we can go one on one with Kise-kun and Midorima-kun. Murasakibara-kun would be extremely difficult as neither of us can dunk. Aomine-kun, I think we could get him to enter The Zone, but we wouldn’t be able to touch him when he really gets going. Akashi-kun is a bit beyond our reach at this point.” 

“Okay, so we have work to do. That’s encouraging.” 

“Encouraging?” He tilts his head. 

“Well, it wouldn’t be fun if there isn’t a challenge to it. Long term, our goal is to defeat the Generation of Miracles. We can check Kise off the list, so we have four people left to beat before reaching that goal. It’s encouraging that we have something to work towards and that it won’t be easy.” 

Kuroko smiles just a little bit, and it lights up his whole face. “I’m glad that you’re my partner on this, Yu-kun.” 

I smile, but then I start thinking a bit. “I, uh, we are friends right? Not just teammates?” 

That smile quickly turns to a frown of confusion. “I would consider us friends Yu-kun.” 

A grin comes to my face as warmth washes over me at his words. “Good! So do you want to come hang out at my place then?” 

“Sure, Yu-kun.” 


	14. Cathartic

We walk to my apartment building which is only two blocks away. I live on the seventh floor, so we take the elevator. When we enter my apartment, Kuroko mutters the typical Japanese guest greeting which makes me chuckle. 

“We’re the only ones here Tet-kun, I live alone.” 

“Yu-kun lives alone?” He asks as we take off our shoes and start walking towards my living room. 

“Yeah, my father bought me this place. He said it was for his ‘peace of mind’ but it’s really just him trying to apologize for pushing me so hard when I was younger.” 

I open up my laptop, still connected to the TV and open up YouTube. 

“What did he do exactly?”    
  
I can say that I didn’t expect him to just straight out ask that. Kuroko stares at me, eyes full of curiosity. 

“He pushed me so hard with Baseball that I had a major burn out, and I fell into depression, I was a mess. I was 13 and I hadn’t had a day off of Baseball since I was 6. I broke, and he only noticed it when I kept faking injuries and refused to go to practices. So, after therapy, we came to the conclusion that we should move. We came back to his home country, Japan. He lives on one end of Tokyo, I live on this end. I have my own space, and ever since I told him about me joining Basketball, he’s been supporting me without pushing me.” 

I want to say something along the lines of ‘congrats you unlocked my tragic backstory’, but the way that Kuroko is looking at me is making me think twice about it. He seems genuinely concerned. Instead, I turn to my laptop and start typing in one of my earliest high school games. 

“In America, what was your last year of middle school was actually my first year in high school. Want to watch one of my old games?” 

His response is immediate and vehement. “I do not wish for Yu-kun to put himself through any emotional trauma for my sake.” 

I smile a bit sadly. “I think I need to watch it actually, see how far I’ve come.” 

At Kuroko’s hesitant nod, I play the video, turning my laptop away so I can focus on the TV. 

“Leading off, number 27, Yuya Kinjo!” The announcer says into the microphone. Even from the graininess of the video, I can tell that I’m already in Flow State. That was the only way I was able to enjoy games at that point in time. 

The crack of that bat is familiar, but surprisingly I no longer feel the ache that had settled into my body so long ago. Lead off Home Run. 

Thankfully, this was a highlight video, and it jumped around quite a bit. I saw myself make diving plays, steal bases, and honestly being scary as a freshman in high school. It’s sort of startling to see my body language though. The entire video I look downtrodden, and a smile never moves my lips. 

“Yu-kun seems happier now.” Kuroko states as the video ends. 

I look at him with a wide grin. “I am happier, and I’m thankful to you for that Tet-kun.” 


	15. Game Plan

Even with the proposal and formation of the first year study group, Captain Hyuuga still can’t reach Flow State. While everyone else, including Kuroko and I, practice in Flow State, Hyuuga-senpai is struggling with trying to keep up. This carries throughout the rest of May and all of June, all the way up till our first game of the Summer Interhighs in July. 

Our first opponent is Shinkyo Academy. 

“I hear they have an international student on their team.” Fukuda says as we’re all walking out onto the court. 

I stare at him until he tilts his head to the side. “You, do realize that I’m an international student too, right? I’m American.” 

“Yeah, but you look Japanese. It’s easy to forget that you’re not from here.” He waves off, and I sulk a bit. Kuroko comes up and pats me on the shoulder. 

“There, there, Yu-kun. I know you’re American, it’s hard not to whenever Kise-kun visits.” He says in this fake sympathetic tone. 

I scoff at the blue head. “You’re just jealous I don’t hug you more.” 

That causes Kuroko to turn bright red and sputter quietly. Before I can tease him more, the doors on the opposite side of the gym open up, and in walks an extremely tall guy with very dark skin next to what looks to be a smaller teammate of his. 

I think Coach Riko told us that the guy’s name is Papa something. 

My thoughts are stopped when he bumps into Kuroko. Without any permission, he slides his hands under Kuroko’s armpits and lifts him up like Kuroko weighs nothing. 

“What is this child doing here? I am here to destroy the Generation of Miracles, not children.” He puts Kuroko back down, and then walks over to his team. 

My team struggles to contain their laughter, but I look on apprehensively as Kuroko turns to face us. Fury can not even begin to describe the expression that he wears. We all flinch back when he makes eye contact with Coach Riko. 

“Have you calculated our collective Zone time?” His voice is icy, and I know I need to step in. 

“You can’t go in fueled by wild emotions. Temper that anger, and we’ll tell you the time.” My stern gaze battles against his enraged one. Daggers thrown between us even though no words convey our fight. Thankfully, Kuroko takes a deep breath and visually calms down. His normal blank look masks his emotions, but his eyes are still full of passionate wrath. I smirk, and nod to Coach Riko. 

“With our starting five, we have a collective time of thirty minutes.” What she doesn’t mention, is the fact that only four out of the five regulars are able to enter Flow State. Even with everyone around him being extremely productive and improving dramatically, Captain Hyuuga has been able to keep up. 

“We save it for the second half. Let’s keep the game as close as we can before we use it.” 

“Is it wise to use it this early?” Captain Hyuuga questions, crossing his arms over his chest. 

Coach Riko nods, a smirk on her own lips. “This is actually the perfect time to use it. No one is going to be looking at the first game of a tournament from schools that are not well known. If we use it, and win, and Shinkyo spreads the word, no one will believe it because again, we are a no name school. We have the perfect cover.” 


	16. Captain

The game starts with Papa winning the opening toss, and Shinkyo has the ball. I go to mark the point guard, number 8, and manage to get him with my gaze. He gets so wrapped up in staring me down, that he doesn’t notice as he brings the ball in front of him, and I knock it away in a steal. 

I use the attention to make a point by dribbling around two defenders and then passing to Kuroko who goes unnoticed, who passes to Captain as he sets up outside the three point line. 

The score goes back and forth for the first quarter. I make use of my Mood Swing, internally cringing at the fact that the name stuck, and make it super easy for everyone to move around me. 

I can tell that Kuroko isn’t even using his Misdirection. 

The second quarter goes much the same, and our score at half time is 47-50, Shinkyo Academy. They probably don’t even notice the atmosphere of our team as we break for our half time chat. 

“May I request that I am passed the ball on the throw in. I have some words for Papa-san that need to be said.” Kuroko demands, even though he phrases it like a question. 

I feel my inner bloodlust start pounding through my veins as I see my teammate get so heated. The rest of the team feeds on it as well. I glance over to Captain Hyuuga, and he looks deep in thought. If he needs to be shown that we can be trusted, then this is the perfect opportunity. I can feel it in my bones that something extraordinary will happen out there.

  
  
  
  


We get back out on the court and Shinkyo Academy looks extremely arrogant for a team with only a three point lead. 

Me, Kuroko, Izuki, and Mitobe share a look, and I can tell that we’ve all dropped into Flow State. We all look at Captain Hyuuga in sync, and he looks to be freaking out slightly. 

“Hey man, trust us to do our jobs, we trust you Captain.” Izuki-senpai reassures without the use of a pun. 

We break out of our circle and stand on the court. Izuki throws the ball in to Kuroko who dribbles up to Papa. 

“I am the weakest of the Generation of Miracles, and I am not a child, Seirin are not children.” He breaks past the tall teen, flowing around the defenders, and manages a layup without anyone covering him.    
  
The ball gets thrown in, and number 5 tries to rush Izuki. Izuki uses his Eagle Eye to back tip the ball, without looking, into the hands of Mitobe who goes for a dunk. 

This time, the ball gets thrown in, and I am defending against 8. He can’t take his eyes off me, and I can tell by the look he is giving me that he wants to pass the ball. I pick my moment, steal the ball. Going back to the basket, I pass to Captain before faking the layup, two defenders on me. 

Captain is wide open, unmarked, and takes his time to set up his shot. When he sinks it, the feeling on the court changes. We all make eye contact with each other before looking at Captain. His demeanor has changed. Before, it was tightly bound nerves, well concealed, but our team was seeing the splitting fibers. Now, Captain Hyuuga stands tall, and looks relieved. 

I run up to him before the ball gets thrown in. 

“Ready to trust us, I take it.” My snark is not appreciated, as he bops my head. 

“Get your head in the game you fucking centerpiece!” 

“Never change Captain!” I say, going to mark 8. 

Izuki exclaims from his position making 5. “So we put the Yen Bill in the change machine, and nothing changed!” 

Even with all the joking, everyone on Seirin is in Flow State. We run seamlessly around each other, and our speed increases to an extreme level. Kuroko and I mix in bounce passes as much as we Ankle Break and Phantom Cross against our marks respectively. Mitobe blocks valiantly as our center, barely allowing a ball even near our basket. Izuki sets up the plays, his Eagle Eye in full effect, and even stronger than I’ve ever seen it before. And to top it off, Captain Hyuuga is making shot after shot, no matter the distance. 

It’s beautiful, and it feels so good to do it together. 

Shinkyo Academy has no idea what the hell is going on. It’s clear by their confusion whenever Kuroko runs by and steals the ball. They didn’t see him the entire first half because my Mood Swing masked his presence so well. Having all five of us in Flow State is like a sucker punch to their gut. 

When the final buzzer goes off, the score is 112-50. 

They didn’t manage to make a basket the entire second half. 

We won our first game of the Summer Interhigh Tournament.

The rest of the day follows a similar pattern although we do not go into Flow State again. Our teamwork is already a leap ahead of where we started just today. We win our next two matches against Jitsuzen and Kinga high schools by 20 points each. 

Day One of the Summer Interhigh is in the books. 

Day Two is just as good, us winning a close game 89-87 against Hakuryo High. Our second game was a blow out even worse than our first game. Mainly because Kuroko and I had stopped the people on the team from harassing kids at a streetball court earlier in the week and we recognized them. Meijo Academy went down 108-41. 


	17. Songs and Phonecalls

As the new week starts, I get Captain Hyuuga alone before practice starts. 

“You trust us now.” I state plainly. He scowls, but nods. 

“Yeah, so now you’re here to say that I can enter The Zone again, am I right?” 

I chuckle. “Well, yeah. If trust in your teammates is what you needed to push you there, then that’s one of your triggers. Now you have to trust us at practice too, so we can all get better.” 

He rolls his eyes, the glare off his glasses hitting my vision for a moment. My eyes don’t deceive me as I watch his shoulders relax. “If I must. Now get to running with the rest of us, you fucking centerpiece!” 

  
  
  


Kuroko comes over to hang out on Wednesday night. We sit, watching a movie I downloaded when an idea creeps in on me. 

“Hey, how’s your English skills?” 

My random question subtly startles the teen. He blinks owlishly at me, processing the question. 

“I believe they are fairly good, especially with your tutoring in the subject. Why?” 

I pause the movie and open up another tab for Youtube. “I want you to describe your old teammates and I’m going to find some songs that fit them. I only really know American songs, that’s why I asked you about English.” 

He hums. “Sounds interesting.” He eats some popcorn. “Kise is very enthusiastic, but also two-faced. He makes you see what he wants you to see.” 

“Hm, he’s a model too, right?” Kuroko nods, and I smirk. 

“Got it,” and I play Fuck Fake Friends by Bebe Rexha. 

Kuroko reads the lyrics as they come across the screen, and his eyes widen. “This sounds like it would be from Kise’s point of view.” 

“Next?” 

“Midorima-kun is a tsundere.” 

“I know the perfect song.” IDFC by Blackbear is playing, and Kuroko smiles a bit sadly. 

“It fits, but it’s sad to think he might not believe himself to be good enough for someone to love.” 

“Yeah, that song is a bit sad. Who’s next?” 

Kuroko taps his chin a few times, and then holds his finger up. 

“Aomine-kun, he is very wild. And perverted as well.” 

I take a different road with this song choice. Death Valley by Fall Out Boy comes out the speakers, and Kuroko bobs along with the beat. 

When the song finishes, he nods approvingly. “Murasakibara-kun is next I suppose. He’s quite lazy, and he eats a lot.” 

“Oh that’s easy.” The Lazy Song by Bruno Mars is put on, and Kuroko smiles slightly. 

“Very much like Murasakibara-kun.” 

“Last is Akashi, right?” I ask, my fingers ready to type in a song. 

“Yes, Akashi-kun is known as the Emperor now. He is ‘absolute’ as he would say.” Kuroko’s tone is bitter, but I ignore it in favor of the fantastic idea in my head. 

“Okay, so instead of a song, we’re going to watch a movie.” 

“What?”

“It will make sense, don’t worry.” I go to Netflix, and thankfully the movie hasn’t been taken down yet. I reconnect my laptop to the TV, and we’re greeted with the opening sequence of a llama crying in the middle of a jungle. 

The scene pauses, and a voice comes on, breaking the fourth wall. Finally, the song starts, and I have the subtitles running on the bottom of the screen. Kuroko looks like he’s about to burst into laughter as The Emperor’s New Groove begins. 

About halfway through the movie Kuroko makes a comment. 

“I need to show this movie to the Miracles. Preferably after we beat them all.” 

“Would Akashi understand the irony?” I ask, not serious but still curious. 

“I would imagine, after we make him find a new groove of course.” 

“Of course.” 

  
  
  
  


Kuroko comes over again the next day. We’re quietly doing our homework. I think he’s working on Japanese History while I’m struggling through Modern Japanese. It’s as I'm trying to decipher some Kanji that my phone starts buzzing. 

I turn it over and grimace at the caller ID. 

“Who is it?” Kuroko’s tone is definitely slightly concerned. 

“My father.” I mutter before accepting the call. “Hey Dad.” 

“ _ Ah Yuya! I’m glad you picked up on the first go around. How are you doing?”  _

It’s not that he doesn’t care about me. I’m just still bitter about what happened with Baseball. I sigh, and manage a small smile. 

“I’m doing fine. I’m actually doing homework right now with my friend Kuroko.” 

_ “Kuroko? He’s on the Basketball team with you right? I think you’ve mentioned him before.”  _ He sounds a bit apprehensive, and then it clicks for me as to why.

“Yeah, we’re friends too, not just teammates like it was with Brady.” 

_ “I’m glad Yuya. Anyways, I won’t keep you from your friend, I just wanted to check in with you. Love you Yuya.”  _ The relief in his voice is honestly nice to hear. 

“Love you too Dad.” I hang up, and when I look at Kuroko he has a wistful expression. A small smile is on his lips, and I can’t figure out why. “What?”   


“Even though Yu-kun made it seem like he doesn’t have a good relationship with his father, it’s actually the opposite. You two seem close.” 

I feel myself bristle a bit. My shoulders scrunch to my ears, and I wrap my arms protectively around myself. 

“Well, it’s better now than before.” I look at the time on my phone. It’s pretty late, almost 10pm. “You can stay the night if you want Tet-kun. I’d feel bad if I let you go home at this hour.” 

Kuroko glances at the time, then pulls out his own phone and, I’m assuming, types out a message to his parents. “That’s very kind of you Yu-kun.” 

I get up and put our dishes in the sink. “You can take my bed, and I’ll sleep on the couch.” 

“No, I don’t want to take you from your bed, I’ll take the couch.” Kuroko argues, face blank as ever. 

Sighing, I look over my shoulder as I scrub a plate. “You’re my guest Tet-kun, you’re sleeping in a bed tonight.” 

“And you need to sleep in a bed tonight too.” Holy shit, I think I see a pout. 

“We’ll both sleep in my bed then.” I announce my tone final. 

I set the dishes to dry, and when I look over at Kuroko, he’s slightly pink. It’s as I’m taking in his figure that the weight of my words descends upon me. I just asked him to sleep in the same bed as me. Oh. And he’s blushing. Interesting. 

He was jealous earlier in the week, jealous enough to give me a nickname in order to get his friend to leave. He was blushing then too. 

Does… does Kuroko like me?

No. Don’t assume anything. Remember that I’m in Japan, and Japan is still pretty homophobic. I don’t believe Kuroko is a homophobe, but it’s better to just ignore this for now. Well, flirting should be fine, but I’ll hold off on any queer conversations for as long as I can.


	18. Feelings?

I wake up first the next morning, and start making some scrambled eggs. The smell must drag Kuroko out of bed, because he waddles into the kitchen sleepily rubbing his eye. I take a glance, and oh shit. Yeah, flirting will have to do. I must. He’s too adorable. 

“Your bed head is cute.” I comment, stirring the eggs in the pan. 

“Oh.”

That’s all he says? I take my eyes off the food again, and see his face is a very cute shade of pink, darker than last night. 

The rest of our morning is quiet, and we move around each other as easily as we do on the court. It’s almost surreal in a way. It’s so easy for the two of us to be around one another. I lend him one of my extra uniform shirts, and some clothes to change into for practice. We are similar in size even though I’m a little bit taller than him. 

Our walk to school is enjoyable, although I have to pull him along when I realize that we are running slightly late. 

“Why do we need to run Yu-kun?” He asks cluelessly as I drag him by his wrist. 

“We’re opposites, remember? I get called out for being late.” 

“Oh the woes of being noticeable.” I faintly hear Kuroko mutter. 

Barking out a laugh, I squeeze my hand. “Yes, tell me how wonderful it is to have a low presence. Please enlighten me.” Glancing over in his direction, his cheeks are pink once again. 

That’s odd, I don’t think I said anything particularly flirty. Then I notice our hands are linked, fingers threaded together. Well, I’m already here, might as well enjoy it. I squeeze my hand again, and this time, he squeezes back. 

“Well, since you asked, I get to sleep in class without the teacher saying anything.” He manages to say after a small moment of awkward silence. 

I chuckle. “You also are locked out of stores that use automatic doors because the sensors can’t see you.” 

Kuroko punches my shoulder with his free hand. 

“Okay, low blow on my part. Let’s just get to class.” I acquiesce, trying to save myself from further injury. 

  
  
  
  


When we are all in the locker room getting ready for practice, I faintly hear Kuroko murmur to himself. 

“Yu-kun smells really nice.” He almost whispers while putting on the shirt that I lent him this morning. 

I feel my cheeks burn, and of course someone notices. 

“Kinjo, are you blushing right now?” Koganei-senpai asks slyly. 

I sputter slightly. “W-what? No!”

“You are totally blushing! I wonder what could have caused it?” He taps his finger to his chin. 

Next to Koganei-senpai, Furihata speaks up. 

“Well, Kuroko is wearing his clothes.” 

That comment causes everyone in the room to start crowding me. Outside of the mass of bodies, I see Kuroko staring curiously. 

“Why’s he wearing your clothes?” 

“Why does he even have them?” 

“Is something going on between you two?” 

That last question comes from Izuki-senpai. Who gets shoved by Captain Hyuuga. 

“Oi! Don’t go getting any weird ideas. That’s disgusting.” 

Ah, there’s the homophobia I knew would be present in Japan. Shit. Fucking great. I feel myself clam up slightly, before I manage to work a neutral mask over my features. 

“Let’s go practice guys, we’ve got some games to win this weekend.” I say in my carefully constructed media tone. Internally, while I thank my father for the media training, I am now paranoid. 

What if I do something and they figure it out? 

For the first time in a long while, I find myself shut out from entering Flow State. My mind is too wired with these intrusive thoughts to even contemplate drowning everything out. Today I can feel everyone’s eyes on me, and while they usually don’t bother me, right now it feels like they’re waiting for me to slip up. 


	19. Daydreams

Practice ends, and I find myself lagging behind as much as possible. I’m the last one in the locker room. 

I walk out, and my eyes get drawn to the familiar blue hair that looked so cute this morning. Words lodge themselves in my throat as we walk side by side. Trudging down the same path we usually take, instead of being a nice walk, this tension hangs over us. 

“What’s wrong?” Kuroko asks, breaking the silence. 

I debate lying to Kuroko, telling him that I’m fine and not to worry, but it just doesn’t feel right. He’s my friend. 

“It’s about what Captain Hyuuga said.” I supply. 

“Not everyone is like that, stupid Yu-kun.” His tone is warm, and it draws my gaze. Kuroko’s blue eyes are soft, shining with comfort. 

“That’s good to know.” I speak quietly, just above a whisper. 

Kuroko looks off to the side for a moment before making eye contact with me once again. “Would you mind if I ask what your orientation is?” 

That makes me smile. “I’m Pansexual. Doesn’t matter what gender someone is, I can find them attractive.” 

He nods, accepting it. A weight lifts off my shoulders, and I feel as if I can float away from the Earth. 

“I used to identify as Asexual, but now I think Demisexual fits me better.” He offers, and I feel the sliver of hope in my body expand. 

_ “Do you mind if I ask what made you feel more comfortable with that label?”  _

_ Surprisingly, well, it shouldn’t be surprising but it still feels that way, Kuroko smirks. “Well, this person who stands out in crowds, and who is the constant center of attention, they came along and were able to see and hear me easily from our first meeting. After getting to know them for a while, I found myself watching them and imagining doing things with them. Things that have never really interested me before.”  _

_ My face is red. My face is burning. I want to explode. Whoever he is describing certainly sounds like me. I hope it’s me I really, really, really hope that it’s me. Oh, he’s stepping closer to me!  _

_ Funnily enough, we’ve stopped in the middle of a streetball court to have this talk.  _

_ “They made me really happy when they were holding my hand this morning, and their clothes smell really good.”  _

_ I lift my hand to cup his cheek. The small height difference is perfect, he doesn’t need to crane his head to look at me, and I don’t have to hunch over to gaze down at him. We can easily look each other in the eyes.  _

_ “May I kiss you?” I ask.  _

_ “You may.” He consents, and I lean forward.  _

_ Gentle as I can, I press my lips to his. His lips are slightly chapped, and while he is pushing back, returning my kiss, my tongue snakes out of my mouth and laps at his lips, wetting them. It’s this prodding which deepens our kiss. We explore each other slowly, shyly. To move any faster would ruin this moment.  _

_ I pull away slightly, ending the deep kiss, and press a quick chaste one to his lips before moving back fully. His blue eyes are half lidded, and the blush is so adorable on his cheeks.  _

_ “Yes, I’m definitely Demisexual.” He announces, and grabs my hand from his face.  _

_ “Would you do me the honor of dating me?” I propose, a smile on my face.  _

_ “It would be my honor actually,” He threads his fingers through mine. _

That’s what I want to happen, but Kuroko interrupts my fantasy with an innocent question.

“Milkshakes?” 

“Milkshakes.” I agree, trying to keep myself from blushing too hard.


	20. Interhigh Semi Finals

As a team, we all walk into the stadium together. The semi finals. Just a few more teams before we get to the Finals League for the overall championship. Coach Riko leads us to the locker room, and we get changed. As I’m putting on my shorts, I spy a penny on the ground. An American Penny in a Japanese men’s locker room? Taking a closer look, I see that it’s facing heads up, so of course I take it. I have to follow the saying,after all. I briefly look at the year, 1997, and then stick it in the bottom of my right shoe. 

It’s while I’m tying said shoe that I see Kuroko step out of the locker room. I believe that we might be playing one of his old teammates in the finals if things work out for us, so he must be going to talk to them. 

When we start warm ups, I feel the tension in the building start to rise. There is another court next to ours, and I spy the green hair of Midorima glancing over with a calculative gaze. Ah, so that’s the one we could play. I smile, and then make a basket, continuing on with warm ups. Kuroko slides up next to me, hip checking me lightly. 

“Midorima-kun told me that the Lucky item for Libra today is an American Penny from the year 1997.”

I chuckle. “And what is Aquarius’ Lucky item?” 

“A black wristband.” He replies, pulling said band back slightly and lets it slap against his skin. 

“Good thing we’re both wearing them then.” I don’t bother to elaborate, going to make another warm up shot. 

I watch as Kuroko does the same, but purposefully misses when he notices that Midorima is looking over. Ah, so he wants to keep his shots a secret? I’m actually surprised that Kise hasn’t said anything yet. Maybe he didn’t see when we played them? 

We all huddle around Coach Riko, who reads out the lineup. 

“Hyuuga, Izuki, Mitobe, Koganei, and Tsuchida. You’re our starting five. This is your time to shine, go get some revenge.” She smirks, and the five nod in unison. 

When they get to middle court, she turns to us first years. “Last year, Seiho killed us and kicked us out of the tournament.”

Right out the gate, we score first. Captain Hyuuga makes an impressive three pointer, and they all continue to charge through Seiho like they are not even there. I nudge Kuroko slightly. 

“How do you think we’ll do?” 

He passively watches as points start racking up on the scoreboard. That isn’t to say Seiho isn’t scoring as well, but we have already gotten a huge lead and it’s only five minutes into the first quarter. 

“They have this game easily. Watching their teamwork is truly awe inspiring.” He gushes, well as much as his blank face allows anyway. 

I hum, agreeing. My attention gets pulled to the other court, and I look over just in time to see Midorima get benched. I look at their score and Shutoku, Midorima’s school I suppose, is already leading by thirty points. 

“Hey, what’s Midorima’s specialty?” 

Kuroko readily provides an answer. “He specializes in shooting, particularly three pointers. He also never shoots unless he knows that it will go in.” 

“So we crowd him, make sure he doesn’t get the ball. And if he does, crowd even closer, swiping at the ball.” I mutter to him, but Kuroko shakes his head. 

“We shouldn’t underestimate his team either. Shutoku is strong as well.” He cautions. 

“Mood Swing plus Misdirection is our best bet then.” Our score keeps going up, the second years all enjoying the battle against the team that defeated them last year. 

Half time comes and goes, with Coach Riko warning the guys not to use ‘The Zone’, so we can keep it as a secret weapon should the need arise. Captain Hyuuga rallies the second years to play another two quarters strongly. The payoff being a score of 78-69 in our favor. 

I glance over to the Shutoku game and the blowout score of 118-38 against Ginbo High is nothing to laugh at. They benched Midorima five minutes in, and the score still got that high? We should definitely heed Kuroko’s words. 


	21. Just Sit Down I Guess

Our team goes out to eat, and just before I sit down, I’m glomped in a hug. 

“Kise!” I exclaim, the warmth from the embrace seeping into me. 

“Kinjocchi!” He returns with just as much enthusiasm. Next to him stands his Captain I think. “Kurokocchi! Can we join you and your team?” 

He doesn’t wait for permission as he slides into the seat next to me. His Captain, Kasamatsu I believe, bops the blonde over the head. “You idiot! At least wait for them to answer!” 

“Ah, it’s fine Kasamatsu-san. Please sit down.” Kuroko states, and it’s funny to watch the Captain flinch in surprise before recognizing the bluenette. 

Kise circles a finger around a glass of water, a pout on his lips. “Senpai and I came to watch you two and Midorimacchi, but neither of you played, and he only played five minutes. It was so boring.” He moans dramatically. 

I chuckle and then have the urge to fluff his hair. So I do it. “Tomorrow will be exciting though.” Kise shrinks away from my hand, protectively covering his hair. He shoots me a glare, but it is clearly playful. 

The doors to the restaurant open, and in walks Shutoku. They take a table not too far off from Seirin’s, but Midorima starts walking over to us, a black haired guy by his side. 

“I trust you are prepared for your loss tomorrow?” Midorima states, pushing up his glasses. 

“Shin-chan! So rude, talking to your friends without introducing me first.” The black haired guy snarks, and his mischievous grin is interesting to note. I watch as his eyes take in our table. 

“Takao Kazunari,” He says his name, and his eyes flit from me to Kuroko, and he does a double take. “Ah, I almost didn’t see you there.” 

That catches my attention. I don’t make any outward reactions, but inside I’m taking everything about this guy into account. He’s observant for sure, but him having to do a double take means that there is a chance my presence can still mask Kuroko’s. 

“Nice to meet you Takao-san.” Kuroko greets with an inclination of his head, but the shared eye contact we make tells me he and I are on the same page. “My name is Kuroko Tetsuya, and this is my teammate Kinjo Yuya.” 

“So you’re Kuroko! Shin-chan told me all about how you’re a Shadow and all of that, but you’re not that difficult to see.” His smirk is starting to get annoying. Then he turns his gaze on me. “So you’re his Light, Kinjou-san? I can’t wait to play against you.” 

All while he is talking, I take note of Kise and Kasamatsu keeping quiet. It’s interesting that they are willing to keep Seirin’s playstyle, especially mine and Kuroko’s, a secret. 

I smile brightly at the black haired guy. “I’m sure we’ll play a good game. Why don’t you both sit down? I know I have some questions for Midorima about Oha Asa.” 

That throws the entire group off, aside from Kuroko. Midorima pushes up his glasses, but I spy a small bit of pink on his cheeks. Ah, hiding embarrassment. 

I turn to the green haired teen as he takes a seat. “Did you know in America there is a saying about finding a penny?” 

“No, what does that have to do with Oha Asa?” He says a bit snidely. I quirk an eyebrow, and continue on. 

“The saying goes, ‘Find a penny head’s up, and all day long you’ll have good luck’, so I thought it was pretty fitting how a penny is my lucky item for today.” 

Recognition dawns over his expression, and he pushes his glasses up once again. 

“I see, how interesting.” 

I look over at Takao, and watch him interact with the other tablemates. He’s very social. “What sign is he?” 

“Takao is a Scorpio.”

Before he can say any more, I interrupt him. “Ah two water signs, how fortunate for you.”

“Takao is no Kuroko though. I wish for Kuroko to train Takao if at all possible.” Midorima bluntly states, not only addressing me, but Kuroko as well. 

I watch as Takao clenches his fist, the only visible sign of frustration in his being. His face remains in that sly grin. 

Kuroko turns down Midorima’s proposal. 

The dinner is tense after that, but eventually we all leave the establishment. 


	22. Seirin Vs. Shutoku Pt. 1

The vibe of the stadium is palpable. It’s energy tingles the top of my head, and flows through my body, electrifying my drive. I want to win today. And looking around at my teammates, it’s fair to say that they feel the same. Kuroko looks at me, blue meeting gold, and he gives a firm nod. I grin in return, trying to contain my passion. 

We get on the court, warm ups proceeding like normal. I briefly see Kuroko and Midorima exchange words, and by the tenseness of Kuroko’s shoulders, I can tell that something is up. 

Lining up, we have the same order as our game against Kaijou and Shinkyo. 

The tip off happens, and Mitobe throws the ball to me. I run up the court, only to get blocked by Takao. I try to watch his eyes, and they flicker around briefly before refocusing on me. I pass to Hyuuga when that refocus occurs, and Takao surprises me by moving in that direction. 

He’s observant. He won’t fall for either mine, or Kuroko’s passive presences. If we work together, it might be enough to throw him off, but it’s too early to tell. 

Captain Hyuuga sinks a three pointer, and the scoring begins. Just as most of the team goes running down the other end of the court, I notice that Midorima stays in the back corner. He sets up for a shot. 

I watch as he shoots the ball at an improbable high angle, and it lands in the basket, a fucking swish at that. 

The shooting guard adjusts his glasses, and I don’t bother to listen to whatever comes out of his mouth. He just made a fucking full court shot! The work he must’ve put in to make that is crazy. However, he revealed that card too early. It’s good for intimidation, but intimidation only works when you know your opponents have weak constitutions.

“I’m open!” I shout, very, very loudly. My team recognizes my que, as all the eyes on the court turn to me. Izuki passes me the ball, and I count my blessings that Midorima is marking me. 

“That shot was incredible! That must’ve taken hours upon hours of work for you to get that down. I’m so impressed! You’re really cool, Midorima.” I gush, making sure to hold eye contact. 

I pass to my left as I’m talking, and Kuroko takes the ball, running forward for a layup with no one stopping him. They are all too busy listening to my words. The ball passes through the basket, and Kuroko is already out of range of the paint when everyone notices. They don’t know how we scored. 

I switch marks with Kuroko, and I’m now guarding Takao. He gets the ball, and before I can start talking, he passes to Midorima, only for Kuroko to steal it back. I run around Takao, yelling how I’m open even though I am clearly not open at all. Kuroko passes to Izuki, who passes to Mitobe, who goes in for a dunk. 

Midorima makes another three pointer at ridiculous range, and I’m not even mad. Shutoku isn’t using their other members much. They are mainly passing to Takao, who is supplying Midorima with enough time to set up his shots. 

We get into another situation where I’m guarding against Takao, and this time I get some time to talk. 

“Midorima is pretty amazing with his shots isn’t he? But you’re pretty damn good too Takao. I really don’t get why he’s so insistent on having Kuroko teach you anything when you two already work so well together.” 

Kuroko goes to steal the ball from Midorima’s Shadow, but Takao surprises us again. He moves the ball out of the way just in time. 

“There you are! You’re hard to find, but I can see you pretty well now Kuroko.” Takao comments, and when he’s doing this, I move, stealing the ball from him. 

“Takao you’re so cool!” I exclaim, rushing by him and shooting a three. “I don’t know many people as good as you Takao, forget Midorima, you’re awesome.” 

While what I say is true, in that I mean it, I am also shaken up. Kuroko is too from how his shock is actually slipping through right now. 

The first quarter ends 24-27, and as we’re in our huddle we go over a new plan. 

Coach Riko points to me.    
  
“Kinjo, you’re going to mark Midorima. Get in his face, fluster him, do whatever you can to throw him off. If he goes to shoot, try to block him, you might have to get into The Zone to do that, but you’re good at learning movements and tells, I trust you with that.” 

Then she turns to Kuroko. 

“Kuroko, you’re going to mark Takao. Now that he’s seen you, regular Misdirection, and Mood Swing plus Misdirection won’t be effective against him. If Vanishing Drive doesn’t work, then you can use your Phantom Cross. Don’t take any shots, or go for layups this quarter.” 

Next, she addresses the three second years. 

“I don’t want you guys to go into The Zone just yet. We’re going to hold off on that for as long as we can. Izuki, that guy Takao, his eyes are very similar to yours, maybe a bit stronger, but you have experience. Use it to set up your plays. Mitobe, keep up your guarding around the net, they aren’t scoring up close, but that doesn’t mean that they can’t. Hyuuga, Clutch Time is an option, but save it for the last minutes of this quarter.”

Now, she talks to all of us. 

“We’re going to utilize Run and Gun this quarter, but make sure to hang back when you score to prevent a full court shot. Let’s go!” 


	23. Seirin Vs. Shutoku Pt. 2

The second quarter begins with Izuki throwing the ball in to me. I don’t bother talking, instead, I favor rushing forward and twisting around the defenders and going for a layup. Barely five seconds have passed and I already feel myself starting to slip into Flow State. I stop myself, something which is extremely hard when I just want to relax and play. 

I hang back, just like planned, and crowd Midorima. Takao sneers briefly, having his scoring option taken away. Kuroko guards him, saying some words which I can’t hear, but seem to cause a visceral reaction in the black haired teen. 

This reaction throws off his pass, and Captain Hyuuga steals the ball. He cuts across the court cleanly, and sets up for a three pointer. I curse as I get screened and Midorima blocks Hyuuga’s shot. 

Five minutes pass in this fashion. We get a few Run and Guns through, Kuroko making a statement with an Ignite Pass to me down at the other end of the court, the ball screaming by Midorima’s face. The score remains close, Shutoku showing why we shouldn’t underestimate the rest of the team with their lead scorer being blocked. 

I’m bored. I quickly make eye contact with Coach Riko. She nods. My grin widens and I allow myself to have fun. 

Everyone’s movements slow down minutely, and I weave around the court. Midorima has the ball. Running up, I crowd him closely, and my gold eyes lock onto his green ones. I can see the moment he recognizes my look, and I use that hesitation to steal the ball and streak through Shutoku’s defense. An easy layup, and I’m back to guarding Midorima. 

“You… are you in The Zone?” He questions in disbelief. 

“What, like it’s hard?” I say a tad condescendingly. 

I can feel the other team’s eyes on me, and Takao tries to make a pass to another teammate only for Kuroko to steal it. I break past Midorima and jump towards the basket. The ball lands perfectly in my hand, and then rolls out, hitting the backboard and then falling through the net. 

I continue my scoring. My setup as the Decoy is pivotal right now, especially if we want to use Kuroko as the Attack in the next half. I pull all the focus to me, and Shutoku has no clue what to do. Midorima tries valiantly to guard me, but it’s too simple to slip by him. 

The second quarter ends with the score being 56-36. 

Coach Riko has a look of serious concentration on her face as she starts her Half time talk. 

“Kinjo, keep using The Zone till Shutoku figures out a way to start shutting you down. If Midorima is truly a Miracle, then he will be coming back with a vengeance. Kuroko, when you see Midorima start getting serious, you can move in to Attack and go into The Zone as well. You two in The Zone should be enough for victory. We do not want to play our trump card just yet.” 

As the rest of the team converses with each other, I spy Kuroko looking at his hands. I sit down on the bench next to him, bumping shoulders. 

“Yu-kun, how’s your jumping?” He asks, blank face, but his eyes burning with something I can’t quite place. 

I raise an eyebrow. “Well, I’m still a few inches from dunking the ball, why?” 

“The angle of Midorima-kun’s shots are incredibly high, if you can’t block his shot, block him from being able to set up.”    
  
I nod, briefly glancing around before leaning closer to Kuroko. “Takao gets really frustrated when you are brought up in conversations when it comes to Midorima, especially about that Light and Shadow stuff. I’m not saying be outright manipulative, but it seems to me that Midorima does not appreciate his Shadow very much, if you catch my drift.” 

The corner of Kuroko’s mouth lifts minutely. 


	24. Seirin Vs. Shutoku Pt. 3

The third quarter begins with Midorima sinking a three pointer from half court. Kuroko quickly rectifies it with an Ignite Pass which I take down court for a layup. It goes back and forth for a while, mainly with me scoring a few times every time Midorima shoots. The score is 67-64 when I feel Kuroko enter Flow State. 

The instant connection I feel is comforting. We move in sync, the rest of our team filling in the gaps. I get the ball and make like I’m going for a layup, Midorima jumping to block me. I shift and pass the ball to Kuroko who has snuck by the rest of the defense. He secures the ball and then jumps for a layup as Midorima and I are coming down. 

“Kuroko?” Midorima says in shock. I can hear the little bit of fear in his voice as well. 

“Yes, Midorima-kun?” Kuroko calmly addresses the green haired teen, blue sparks flowing from his eyes. 

I’m sure I mimic him, except my sparks are golden in color. Midorima looks between the two of us, with indescribable emotions flitting across his face. 

“The Zone... “ Midorima says, trailing off. 

“What, like it’s hard?” Kuroko states before turning away and surveying the play that’s going to start. 

I outright cackle at that. Seems that he heard me earlier I suppose. Oh the look on Midorima’s face is beautiful, but I don’t linger in the pleasure. I find the ball in the hands of Takao, who has Kuroko marking him. 

Pushing the ball out of Takao’s grasp is simple, and Kuroko’s Vanishing Drive when he receives the ball is exquisite to watch. 

What’s even more wonderful, is how neither Kuroko, or myself leave out Izuki, Hyuuga, or Mitobe in our scoring while in The Zone. We include them just as much as we score ourselves. 

The third quarter ends with Seirin leading Shutoku 95-72. 

  
  
  
  


It’s the fourth quarter that Midorima awakens. His demand for the ball is overwhelming, and his teammates begrudgingly listen to him, passing whenever possible to the shooting guard. I try to jump higher, but my legs are only so explosive in an upwards direction. 

He closes the gap quickly, 98-99, and we just lost the lead. There’s about twenty seconds left on the clock.

Kuroko and I make eye contact, and we switch marks. Takao’s eyes are drawn to me, even as he tries to look at Kuroko, my presence pulls him back. 

Izuki passes to me, and I take the ball pretty far down the court before I pass to Kuroko who is standing just outside the three point line. I move around, slipping between screens as he and Midorima face off. I call for the ball, jumping to layup. 

Kuroko, instead of passing, he shoots. The ball vanishes through Midorima’s fingers. It’s about halfway to the basket when the buzzer sounds, and I’m just landing as the ball passes through the net. 

101-99

We win! 

I run over and pick up Kuroko in a hug. I swing him around as the rest of our team circles us. I set him down, the cheering almost deafening, but he turns to me with a smile and a look of awe in his eyes. 

“So that’s what a buzzer beater feels like.” He says, and I laugh, pulling him in for another hug.


	25. A Playdate is Made

As we exit the locker room, Kise runs up to us. 

“Kurokocchi! Did you enter The Zone? You too, Kinjocchi?” He asks quite loudly. 

Kuroko sighs minutely. “Yes Kise-kun, both Yu-kun and I entered The Zone.”

For some reason, Kise calms down. His bubbly personality is toned down, and it has me wondering just what is going on in his head. 

“Hey Kise,” I call the blonde, gaining his attention. He looks at me with a raised eyebrow. “Why did you keep our playstyle secret from Midorima?” 

The smirk that comes on his face is one of mischief. “Where’s the fun in spoiling the surprise? Midorimacchi doesn’t accept any help anyways, and the frustration on his face was visible from the stands.” 

“I see,” humming, I glance at Kuroko briefly, then right back to the blonde. “Think you could keep this ‘Zone’ thing secret from the rest of the Miracles as well?” 

Kise taps a finger to his chin. “Well, I’m not sure about Akashicchi, he’ll probably find out no matter what I do. Murasakibaracchi won’t care. Aominecchi though, I’m definitely keeping it a secret from him. He’s so annoying.” 

“You’re just as annoying Kise-kun.” Kuroko snarks with his monotone voice. 

Kise’s eyes well up in crocodile tears. “Kurokocchi! So mean!” He quickly flips back to normal and looks at me. “You guys don’t play as Light and Shadow.” 

“I see you aren’t an idiot,” Kuroko says, pulling another whine from Kise, and then continues, “Yu-kun likes to call it Decoy and Attack. Either one of us can fill any role at any time, so we can both be decoys, one be decoy the other the attack, or both be the attack whenever we want.” 

Kise’s eyes are wide. “So that means that those layups and that three pointer at the end, those weren’t just flukes powered by The Zone?” 

I cut in before Kuroko can say anything else. “How about you join us at a street court tomorrow and you can go one on one with both of us?” 

“Kinjocchi! Are you serious?” He exclaims in excitement, and I can feel Kuroko’s eyes glaring at me. 

“Yup, one of us will text you the details, but Tet-kun and I should get going.” 

The blonde hugs both of us in goodbye, and leaves us there. 

“Yu-kun.” Kuroko starts. 

“Tet-kun.” I say in retaliation. “Did you really have to explain the entire Decoy and Attack deal? You could’ve just left it at that and it would’ve sufficed.” 

He rolls his eyes. “Yeah, but he would have asked more questions. Kise-kun is good at getting people to say more than they intend.” 

“Fine, I’ll concede that, but why did you glare at me about setting up a one on one?” 

“While you may be ready to play him evenly in a one on one, I am still lacking-” 

“Bullshit, you’re ready and you’re doing it.” 

It goes silent between us as we stare at each other. Kuroko’s stare is intense, but I don’t back down. 

“Milkshakes?” 

“Milkshakes.” I answer before I even really register his question, the response so ingrained in me that it’s automatic at this point. His small smug smile is as annoying as it is endearing. 


	26. One-on-Ones

I’m waiting for Kuroko and Kise to meet me at the street court, since Kuroko told me he was going to escort the blonde. I’m wearing my Pan tank top that I changed into after practice, it says ‘Oh no, everyone is so hot’ written in the Pansexual pride colors. If anything Kuroko will probably get a laugh out of it. 

I see the two of them walking in together, and when Kise notices me, he runs over. My arms are out, ready for the hug. It’s warm, and comfy, just like usual. He pulls back and his eyes scan my shirt. Recognition and understanding flash across his face and I feel my anxiety spike. 

“Finally,” He shouts out, “Someone who understands!” He goes in and hugs me again. 

The anxiety leaves me at his embrace. I peek at Kuroko, who is looking very disgruntled, but he makes no move to push either of us apart. 

“Glad to know I have someone to gossip with about hot people.” I tease before leaving the hug and greeting Kuroko. “Well, let’s go already.” 

“Kurokocchi! I want to play you first.” Kise demands, dribbling a ball casually. 

I take Kuroko’s bag, and go sit on the bench. 

“First to ten sound fair, Kise-kun?” Kuroko asks, standing in a defensive position. The blonde nods, and then drives by the bluenette. Except Kuroko snatches the ball mid-dribble, and takes it for himself. Shooting from the free throw line. 

It goes back and forth for a while, and eventually both Miracles enter Flow State. Kise’s copies are deadly accurate, and Kuroko’s Vanishing Drives are a hassle to block. Eventually though, the score ends 10-8 to Kise. 

Kuroko settles down, just like how I’ve taught him and the team about how to safely exit Flow State. Kise stays riled up, his copy ability in full force, and he looks at me with a smirk. 

I step onto the court with the blonde, and easily enter Flow State. I don’t have any insane tricks like Kuroko to pull out, the most I have is an Ankle Break. Mood Swing doesn’t work unless I have a full team behind me. All I have really is my speed, and my stare. 

Kise starts with the ball, and tries to get around me. I’m nimble, and my defense is solid, but then he jumps back to shoot the ball which I can’t block. I rush under the net and grab the ball, then race towards Kise. I really push my speed, since I haven’t really tested just how fast I am in Flow State when it comes to Basketball. Kise’s eyes widen as I pass him easily. 

The score climbs between us, and when we hit an even 6-6, I try an Ankle Break. 

He falls to the ground, mouth agape, as I run to the basket and add to my points. Kise growls, then comes at me with a vengeance. I don’t score again. 

I come out of Flow State when the match is over. Kuroko and I watch as Kise has to close his eyes and take several deep breaths before calming down enough to talk easily with us. 

“Kinjocchi, you used an Ankle Break against me, right?” He asks warrily. 

Kuroko and I look at each other briefly before I raise an eyebrow and nod in confirmation. 

“It’s different than Akashicchi’s Ankle Breaks. His feels like he’s forcing you down, kneeling in front of him. Yours looks like you split in two and I couldn’t tell which direction you went in.” Kise recounts. 

“That’s interesting for sure.” I say, logging that information for later analysis. “So, what do you recommend that we each work on for one on one’s since you beat both of us?” 

A look of surprise flashes across his face before he taps his finger to his chin. “Kurokocchi needs to get faster, and improve his shots a bit more. Kinjocchi needs to find his own moves, the Ankle Break is a good start.” 

So Kuroko and I can learn from each other then? I can help with his speed, and he can help me come up with interesting moves. My friend looks me in the eyes and I can tell we are on the same page yet again. A quick nod passes between us, and then Kise interjects. 

“Kurokocchi, both of you were able to exit The Zone easily, why is that?” 

Kuroko turns to me, and I shrug. It’s not like Kise can do anything with the information that he’s asking about. 

“Yu-kun is actually a master of entering The Zone, and he offered to teach me how to do it.” 

“Kinjocchi’s a master of The Zone?” Kise exclaims in shock. I quickly shake my head. 

“I mastered how to get in and out, I didn’t master ‘The Zone’ itself.” I draw out the slang title, still refusing to seriously call it by that name. 

“Kise-kun, please make sure that this stays a secret.” Kuroko states as seriously as he can muster. 

“Of course Kurokocchi! It’s safe with me.” 

“Well, now that that’s cleared up do you guys want to get something to eat?” I ask, already packing up my things. 


	27. Epiphany

I lead them to Maji Burger, Kuroko and I get our customary milkshakes, and Kise is looking between us a bit bewildered. 

“I’m seeing double…” He mutters to himself before biting into a hamburger. 

“So Kise…” I start getting the blonde’s attention, “You’re Pan too?” 

His eyes widen, then he rests his chin on his hand, looking at me with an accepting smile. “I’m actually Bisexual, but your shirt speaks to me on a spiritual level.” 

“Ah, yeah. I tried using Bi as a label, but I felt too constricted by it. Pan just fits me better.” 

His eyes roam my figure, and a sly smirk forms on his face. “I know hugs are our thing, but I’m down for more if you are?” 

Oh shit! Kise is hella flirting with me. He wants to do more? “What does more entail?” 

Kise looks downright sleazy as he reaches across the table to play with my fingers. “A little bit of kissing, a little bit of touching, maybe more if we’re comfortable with that. Maybe moving on to having s-” 

“May I request that you refrain from sex talk when I am around.” Kuroko demands, interrupting Kise. 

That shakes the blonde out of the predatory gaze he was giving me, and now he pouts. “Sorry Kurokocchi, I forgot you don’t like hearing about that stuff.” 

“Just a reminder then, as I’m Asexual, I really get uncomfortable when people talk about intercourse and the like. Please make sure that I’m not around you when you talk about this topic.” He states it in a general way, but the way he stresses Asexual is very odd. 

I raise an eyebrow. Just a few days ago he said he prefers to label himself as Demisexual. Maybe he just doesn’t want Kise to know?

Wait!

Kuroko made a nickname for me to unbalance Kise and proceeded to lie to get him to leave out of jealousy in the past. Is this another jealousy thing? Using the cover of Asexual and being uncomfortable as a way to keep Kise away from me? Oh my god! Does this mean Kuroko might actually like me? 

While I’m internally cracking a mystery, it seems that Kuroko has managed to talk Kise into leaving once again. I barely lift my hand to say goodbye, before Kise exits my view. I turn to fully face Kuroko. 

“Do you… not want him to know that you’re actually Demi?” I question. It’s probably my safest option at this point. 

Red covers the bluenette’s cheeks. “Actually, I really don’t like to talk about such things in public and with multiple people around. With the person I’m attracted to, I think it will most likely be fairly easy to talk about it.” 

Okay, fuck, maybe I’m wrong then? 

“That and Kise often equates Asexual to Aromantic as well, so when I remind him, he usually stops talking about love and partners in general.” 

Maybe I’m not wrong? 

Now I’m confused. Fuck, for someone as blunt as Kuroko, he’s giving me hella mixed signals right now. 

“Can we talk more about this at my house?” 

At his nod, we walk the short distance back to my apartment. Settling in on the couch, I have my arm resting and holding my head up. 

“Tetsuya, can you be honest with me right now? No half truths or anything of the like?” 

The usage of his given name causes a visual reaction. His cheeks tinge pink, and his back straightens. He rubs his wrists, right where his wristbands usually rest. Slowly, he nods his head while making eye contact with me. 

“Do you like me? Like romantically like me?” I ask gently. 

He gasps, face turning away from me. After a quick deep breath he meets my eyes again. 

“Yes, I like you romantically Yuya-kun.” 

My skin burns as I feel the blush start at my head and crawl over my face, and down my neck. I can’t contain my wide grin. 

He likes me. 

Kuroko Tetsuya likes me!

I reach over and pull him to me. Embracing him with a fierce might, he freezes slightly, but then wraps his own arms around me. 

“Yuya-kun?” Kuroko mutters into my shoulder. 

I hum. 

“I’m guessing that you like me too?” 

I squeeze him tighter. “Yeah, I like you too.” I then let him pull back from the hug. “Do you want to date me? Be my boyfriend?” 

“Yes to both, Yuya-kun.” His smiles melts my already molten heart. All it succeeds in doing, is making me more like putty in his hands. 


	28. Another One-on-One and a Puppy

Today I have to walk home alone. Kuroko’s in the Library Committee and he has to stay behind at school. I mope, sighing as dramatically as I feel in the moment. I’m not too far from my apartment, so I take a quick detour. I need some time to just relax. 

As I’m walking by a park, I hear the distinct sound of a basketball being dribbled. I turn my head and see a street court, one I’ve never been to before. There, weaving around invisible opponents is a guy with pretty dark skin, and dark blue hair. 

Dark blue hair? 

Wait, I recognize him. He’s a Miracle. 

Considering Kuroko’s told me about the really tall one, as well as his old captain going to school in completely different cities, that must mean that this guy is Aomine Daiki. 

I drop my bag by the fence and sit down. I can see his eyes trail over to me, my presence definitely noticed. He doesn’t make any move to talk to me, or even acknowledge me, which is pretty funny in my opinion. 

He dribbles, spins, and then goes for this weird ass shot which honestly looks like he just chucked the ball at the backboard. It’s a completely different style of basketball then those I’ve played against so far. However, it is still familiar to me. He has his own style, and he’s used that to his advantage. 

I think about Kise, how he is able to copy his opponents moves, use them against their originators. He’s truly a wonderful copycat, and I have no doubt that he’ll be able to do what I’m about to do soon, but he still needs a push. Perfect Copy is effective, truly scary in actuality. Kise needs his own style to become even deadlier though. 

That’s what I have. And I know I can copy just by watching, maybe not as well as Kise, but still pretty decent. It’s how I’ve learned throughout my baseball career, only being able to look and mimic and execute. 

This basketball that Aoimine is using, it looks fun. It looks frustrating. I want to try. 

I stand up, and Aomine gives me another look before tossing the ball. It easily sinks into the hoop, a swish. 

“Mind if I play with you?” 

He looks me up and down, assessing me. His mouth twists into a nasty smirk. 

“Oh, shortstack wants a one on one? Your funeral.” 

He shifts his stance, dribbling outside of my reach, but different to a technical player. So I don’t guard him in a technical fashion. I get right up close to him, and I see a brief look of surprise before he ducks low and to my right, successfully passing me and dunking the ball. He turns back, almost hesitantly, as if he’s waiting for a specific reaction. 

I merely grin and grab the ball. 

Running, I get blocked very quickly. I move, whichever way my instinct leads me, no thought involved. He continues to keep up with me, it’s like we’re dancing. My feet going in between his as our steps sync up and I keep dribbling the ball, crossing over behind my back, and eventually I get close enough to the net, and enough room to make a jump shot. 

I go for it, and when I see him jump to block me, I lean a little to the right and throw the basketball like I would a baseball. 

Of course, I’m a little off and instead of hitting the backboard and going in, I hit the rim and it shoots back at the two of us. Since I land first, I grab him and spin us so the ball hits me square in the back, knocking the wind out of me. 

Wheezing, my body doubles over. Damn that was a solid thud. I might even get a bruise. 

“What the hell?” I hear Aomine say right before he is grabbing my shoulders and making me look him in the face. “How the fuck did you do that?!” A little spittle flies out of his mouth, hitting my forehead. 

“I don’t really know?” I say, not really wanting to explain anything, but also not really being able to in the first place. 

The guy scoffs, releasing me to grab the ball. “Whatever, our one on one ain’t over yet, shortstack.” 

I take a deep, shuddering breath, and then I’m back to defending. “First to Five wins.” 

Aomine nods, smirk on his face, and what looks to be a flicker of intrigue. 

What proceeds is a trouncing of the highest order as I lose 5-1. Although, the one point I got was very fun as I made up for my earlier throw, this time making it cleanly in the net. 

I can tell it would be different if both of us were in Flow State, but this is fine. 

As Aomine scores the final basket, he sighs, and his shoulders slump down. I raise an eyebrow. 

“Are you okay man?” I ask since he looks like he’s suddenly super exhausted. 

“It’s still just as I thought,” His tone grim, “the only one who can beat me, is me.” 

I don’t know whether I should laugh, or actually delve into the thinking behind that statement. 

“Well, uh, I’m sorry I couldn’t beat you, but I thought we were having fun? Not taking it super seriously, ya know?” It’s the best I can offer, since I don’t know him well at all, only the stories that Kuroko cares to share with me. 

His expression changes from gloominess to rage in an instant as his hands come up to grab my shirt by the collar. He shakes me around for the second time today. 

“You weren’t taking me seriously?! What the fuck does that mean? You’re the weak one here, don’t fucking look down on me!” Aomine shouts, visceral anger flowing from his entire being. As his words seep in, I feel annoyance rearing its head. 

“You weren’t taking me seriously either! Fuck dude, you looked like you were having fun too, why the fuck are you so mad?” I retort, and surprisingly, his eyes widen and he lets me go. 

Silence falls over the street court. Movement catches my eyes, from just outside the fence, and in walks my boyfriend. Kuroko struts all the way up to the two of us, and stands directly beside Aomine. Oh this should be funny.

“I see you’ve met Aomine-kun, Yu-kun.” Kuroko addresses me. 

Aomine shrieks, having not noticed Kuroko at all. 

“T-Testu?” He stutters, his face still wrought with surprise before he quickly switches to anger. “You know this guy?” 

Kuroko sighs in exasperation, and my god is that a mood. “Yes, he’s my new partner.” 

I hold out my hand, a smirk worming onto my lips. “Kinjo Yuya, pleasure to meet you.” 

“Aomine Daiki.” He simply states, not even looking at my hand. “Your new light is shitty Tetsu. You stand no chance this weekend, after all, the only one who can beat me, is me.” 

And he walks away with a basketball under his arms and bag over his shoulder. 

“Wow, and I thought Kise was the drama queen.” 

Kuroko rolls his eyes. “Yes, unfortunately Aomine-kun is worse sometimes. Particularly when it comes to talking about winning.” 

“He plays very differently, but it’s fun.” I speak as I go grab my bag from the fence. 

“Aomine-kun is the ace of the Generation of Miracles. No one can touch him. His speed is incredible, and he can just throw the ball and it will go in. We called it his Formless Shot. Aomine-kun would run down the court and our opponents would give up completely. It broke him I think, no one even tried to play against him.” 

“Thanks for the info dump,” I nudge Kuroko, a grin on my face. “I had fun even though he beat me 5-1, and neither of us were playing full tilt either. Just before you walked up, I told him it looked like he was having fun and he completely froze up.” 

“He looked like he was having fun?” Kuroko’s eyes are wide, almost in disbelief. 

That expression makes me raise an eyebrow. “Uh, yeah. He was smiling the entire time after I threw the ball and missed the first time.” 

Kuroko goes silent, contemplating. I take the silence to sneakily link pinkies with him as we walk down the street. 

The sky looks to be getting grayer, and the scent of petrichor surrounds us. 

To Kuroko’s right, a small “woof” rings through the coming darkness. Kuroko doesn’t even look at me as he goes over to the source of the sound. He walks out of an alley holding a small dog that looks to be a mini husky. 

Blue eyes stare at me, a tongue rolling out of its mouth in a pant. 

Blue eyes.

I shift my gaze to Kuroko.

Then back to the dog. 

Back and forth a few more times before I point to the pupper. “Tetsuya number 2, Nigou.” 

“Nigou.” Kuroko nods, and the puppy barks, which we take as him accepting the name. 

“He can stay with me for a while.” I offer, and then feel a drop of water hit my head. 

Suddenly, rain starts coming down on us. Kuroko opens his school jacket and holds Nigou safely to prevent the dog from getting too wet. I drag them along to my apartment complex, which luckily is less than half a block from where we found the dog. 

I’m soaked through my jacket, and I can feel my uniform shirt clinging to my body. I suspect Kuroko isn’t much better. 

We get inside, and I shed my clothes quickly, and then help Kuroko out of his jacket. He sets Nigou down, and the dog runs off. 

Looking back to Kuroko, he is the image of one of my wet dreams. His white shirt is now see through, and it sticks to his back muscles. Ah I need to get out of here before I do something too risky for such a new relationship. 

I mutter that I’m going to get some clothes for us from my room. When I get in, I see the little furball has already jumped on my bed, and is wagging its tail at me. Those blue eyes, so similar to the ones that make me go weak in the knees, stare at me with a smug innocence. 

“Stop looking at me like that.” I murmur to the dog, who responds with a bark. 

I roll my eyes, and then get us some shirts. A short sleeve for me and a tank top for Kuroko. 

Walking to the living room, I spy Kuroko on the couch, shirt off completely. A strangled moan falls from my lips as I try to keep it in. 

I freeze. 

Kuroko, who has been watching me since I stepped into the room, definitely saw, and heard me moan. “Yu-kun?” 

“Ah, I almost don’t want to give this to you.” I say, holding the shirt out to him anyways. He eyes me, but still takes it. 

“And why is that?” 

“Because you look beautiful sitting here shirtless on my coach.” I spout before I lose the nerve. 

His cheeks tinge pink, and I can only smile. Kuroko rolls his eyes, and slips the tank top on anyway. 

“Slow.” 

That’s the only word he says, but it’s also the only word that he needs. I know I need to take it slow. 

“Doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate your body from a distance.” I pitch my voice lower, but I don’t lean in, I merely sit on the couch. 

The TV gets turned one, and eventually Nigou comes out from my room to join the two of us. The small dog settles on Kuroko’s lap as a basketball game comes on. We exchange a few words about the playstyles of the teams on screen. 

I feel Kuroko’s hand slide to mine, and his fingers thread with my fingers. It’s easy, and feels just right. 


	29. *Groans*

I am an idiot. 

I think this as I sit in the emergency room of the hospital. The pain in my wrist has dulled down, but every movement I make still draws a sharp, gnawing flare of hurt. It’s been maybe an hour or so since I hurt myself, and I’m honestly a little terrified to check my phone. 

Luckily, a doctor walks into my little room that I was given when admitted. 

“Kinjo-san, I’m Dr. Ryunosuke Haruta, my nurse Kanawa-san told me that you did something to your wrist. Want to run me through what happened, and how it feels?” His eyes travel to my heavily bruised wrist. 

“Ah, sure,” I shift a bit, wincing as I do so, “Well, I was playing basketball, trying to work on some different moves and one of them went really wrong. I ran toward the basket for a layup, but instead of jumping off the ground cleanly I must’ve stepped on a big enough rock to make me slip. I fell and tried to brace myself, but my arm got caught up under me and the next thing I know I can’t really move my wrist and the pain was really sharp.” 

Dr. Ryunosuke makes a sympathetic face as I describe my mishap. “Yeah, that sounds like it hurt for sure. May I take a look at it real quick, before we send you off for an x-ray?” 

I move my right arm, uncovering my left wrist. The blood pooling in my wrist is beating with my heart, which is painful in itself. The doctor gently grabs my forearm, and holds my hand still, lifting up without really moving the joint. 

“This will hurt, but I’m going to have to feel it and move it around a bit.” He warns, dark brown eyes looking up at me. I nod my consent, preparing myself mentally. 

It hurts quite a bit. But, it doesn’t hurt as much as I thought it would. I watch him move my wrist around, and the doctor takes attentive care to look for my reactions as well. After a few minutes, he nods to himself and lets my arm down softly. 

“To me, it looks to be a severe sprain. Nothing to worry much about, but we’re still going to do an x-ray just to be on the safe side. Do you have a parent or guardian we can contact while we get everything set up?” 

Biting my lip, I nod, and reach into my pocket for my phone. I go to my father’s contact information, relay his number and the doctor leaves me be. Looking down at my phone, I see a text message waiting for me to open from Kuroko. 

The first text I send is to my father. 

Me: Hey, so I’m in the hospital right now, sprained wrist, possibly broken, not sure yet but I’m alright. 

I shakily click on mine and Kuroko’s conversation thread. 

Staring back at me is a picture of Nigou and Kuroko. Nigou is sitting in Kuroko’s lap while they’re facing a mirror, which in itself is adorable. What makes me do a double take at the image is the fact that Kuroko is shirtless. 

Kuroko is a tease! And there isn’t a caption!

I hit the call button on his contact information, too lazy to type out anything. It rings once, twice, and then he picks up. 

“Yes, Yu-kun?” He asks and I can see the tiny smug tilt of his lips in my mind’s eye. 

“First, you are a tease and I’m putting that as my background screen on my phone.” I say and his laugh carries over. Taking a deep breath I say the words that I know are going to condemn me. “Secondly, I’m sort of sitting in the emergency room right now.” 

“What?” The immediate flat tone sets me on edge. 

“I’m an idiot who thought I could practice on my own and I slipped. Now my wrist is all banged up, and I’m waiting to get an x-ray right now.” As softly as I can speak right before a whisper, that’s the volume that I dare to talk at. 

“Which hospital?” He asks, and I can hear the worry and relief in his tone. It’s a strange combination, but it somewhat soothes me a bit. 

I rattle off the name of the hospital, and instead of hanging up like I thought he would, he stays on the line with me. 

“Are… are you mad at me?” 

Kuroko sighs, and my chest constricts. “No, I’m not mad. I’m actually more surprised that this hasn’t happened before now.” 

My shoulders sag, and I lean back on the hospital bed. “Thanks for the vote of confidence.” I mutter, wincing as I jostle my wrist a bit. “Really though, of course this happens the day before our match against Touou.” 

“It is certainly unfortunate, however, our team is strong. I believe that we can beat Aomine-kun and Touou with our teamwork.” He doesn’t sound like he’s lying to himself, or lying to me, or anything like that. He genuinely believes in Seirin, in our team. 

“Yeah, you’re right. Especially if Coach Riko lets everyone else go into Flow State. Aomine is not going to expect that at all.” 

“You still call it Flow State?” Kuroko picks out my words, and I roll my eyes. 

“Yes, it is the scientific name for it, and I’ve been calling it that for years. I’m not going to call it ‘The Zone’ just because that’s the popular name for it.” I draw it out purposefully. 

“Yu-kun is just stubborn.” Kuroko states, and I have to bark out a laugh. 

“Of course I am, I’m the one who taught the whole team about Flow State in the first place. Don’t go questioning me now.” 

“I am going to do just that when you land yourself in the hospital.” He points out, and I frown. 

“Yeah, not cool Tet-kun.” Sue me for being bitter because he’s right, I did put myself in the hospital. I vaguely hear street sounds coming from the phone as silence fills our conversation. 

“I apologize, that was uncalled for.” He finally speaks. 

“Make it up to me when you get here.” I say a bit glumly before hanging up on him. 


	30. The Verdict

Maybe ten minutes later I’m being brought out of the x-ray room, and back to the room I was in in the ER. Waiting in a chair next to the bed is Kuroko, and standing beside the bed is my father. No words are being exchanged, but they don’t seem uncomfortable around each other. 

“We’ll come down with the results in about thirty minutes.” The nurse says before she wanders off. 

“So?” My father asks. 

“Doc said it’s most likely a sprain, the x-ray is just a precaution. I should be out of here with a brace of some sort.” 

“Ah, you’ll still be able to play, that’s good.” He says and I sigh, taking a seat on the bed. 

“Depends on my coach, Dad.” 

Kuroko speaks up at this moment. “Coach Riko will most likely have Kinjo-kun sit out. She’s not one to have others risk further injury.” 

My father merely glances over at him, acknowledging his words, but not saying anything else. 

“Dad, don’t push me on it, alright. We know how well that’s worked out before.” I frown at my father. He’s wearing his coaching uniform for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows, the pro baseball team he works for. He must’ve come straight from one of their practices, or games, I’m not sure which. 

He holds eye contact with me, my gold eyes look right back at his. Finally, he relents, his posture drooping down. 

“You’re right. Just focus on getting better.” 

Dr. Ryunosuke walks in with the x-rays, a smile on his face. “Well, it looks like you have a hairline fracture on your Scaphoid, which is a small bone in your wrist. We’re going to set you up with a small cast that will immobilize your wrist and some mobility in your thumb. The least it will take is about six weeks to heal, but we can take the cast off after two weeks and you’ll have to wear a brace for the remainder of the time.” 

“A cast? Will I be able to play basketball still?” I ask in mild horror at the news. 

The doctor thinks it over for a minute. He looks between me and my father, and I’m guessing he recognizes the uniform. 

“I can make the cast a bit shorter than normal for how far it will go up your forearm, and add a bit more cushion to the interior of the cast. If you want to play, I’m not going to say you can’t, since it really comes down to your pain tolerance.” He speaks carefully, and I nod in understanding. “Alright, I’ll be back with a nurse and we’ll get you all set up.” 

“You’re still going to play?” Kuroko asks when the doctor leaves. I look over at him and smile. 

“I’m at least going to try. Who knows, I might figure something out.” I lean closer to him and whisper, “Can I tell my Dad?” 

He glances between me and my dad, and then nods. 

I turn to my old man with a wide grin. “I know I’ve told you about my friend Kuroko before. This is him, and we’re dating now.” 

My father’s displeasure at my fracture turns to what seems to be a shocked happiness. “Oh! That’s wonderful, I’m happy my son has someone who’s willing to come to the hospital for him. Lord knows no one from his previous relationships would do that.” 

Kuroko blushes before turning to me with a smug look in his eye. “Thank you Kinjo-san, I do enjoy Yuya-kun’s company quite a lot.” 

“Don’t fall for it Dad, he isn’t polite at all!” I exclaim, but watch as both my father and boyfriend laugh in unison. 


	31. Seirin Vs. Touou Pt. 1

If Coach’s glare was deadly before, now I should be obliterated where I stand. She’s eyeing my left hand, and looking at me with a sort of contempt I’ve never thought she could possess. 

“What. Happened?” She grinds out, and I can see the impending explosion. 

“I fell and landed on my wrist yesterday, but the doctor did say that I could play if I wanted to.” I tack on, a sheepish smile creeping onto my lips. 

She goes quiet. Luckily, no one else on the team is around us right now. I caught her early enough that she was at the Coach check in station. A cold sweat starts to form on my brow. Then she sighs. 

“Tell me how you feel during warm ups.” That’s all she says before walking away. 

Oh wow, I feel like I just came very close to death. 

“Kinjocchi!” Arms wrap around me from behind, a strong back hug if you will. 

Really? Just my luck.

“Kise! What are you doing here?” I ask, quickly turning around and squeezing him briefly. I raise my eyebrow, and try to move my left arm behind me, but the blonde spots it. 

“Kinjocchi? Why are you wearing a cast?” He sounds genuinely confused, looking at the green wrapped plaster around my wrist. 

“I fell yesterday, and this sort of just happened. I can still play if I want to though.” I feel like I have to say that, otherwise people will judge me for it. 

Kise gingerly reaches out and grabs the cast, and I let him. The pain is minimal right now anyway since it’s wrapped up. “You’re going to play with a cast?” 

“I’m going to try.” 

“Kinjocchi is so cool! You’re going to be playing with a cast on!” Kise gushes, and of course I spot a head of green hair start walking over. 

“A cast?” Midorima takes one look at my arm and then I feel his gaze travel over the rest of my body. “Did this, by chance, occur yesterday?” 

I groan, raising my right hand to wipe over my face. “I was ranked last yesterday, I take it.” 

“Even so, Kinjocchi says he’s going to play with the cast on, Midorimacchi! That’s pretty awesome!” 

My soul feels like it’s leaving my body, mainly because I want to leave this conversation. Thankfully, I spy a few of my teammates, so I’m able to make a clean getaway. 

  
  
  
  


Warming up is an interesting experience. My left wrist is immobile, so if I dribble, I can only use my fingers on that hand. It’s not that great for playing. On the flip side, for some reason I’m able to think of moves that I can pull off now that I have to work around my broken wrist.

Maybe that’s been my problem? I haven’t had a clear obstacle to overcome, and having this limitation is now making me think more? 

“So? What’s your verdict?” Coach Riko interrupts my train of thought when I wander over to the bench. 

“It doesn’t hurt. It’s more frustrating than anything else.” I take a seat and prop my chin up with my right hand. 

“Will passing be an issue?” Does… does she have a plan?

“Passing is fine, I just can’t cross anyone up with my wrist like this.” Leaning forward, her eyes are calculative, and I can practically see the numbers running through her head. Then she smirks. 

“Today, you’re going to be a full Decoy. No scoring, just faking people out and passing the ball around. You’ll go in during the last two minutes of the second quarter.” 

As she’s telling me this, everyone else on the team starts coming over, warm up ending. She grabs her clipboard and writes a few quick notes before addressing us all. 

“Hyuuga, Izuki, Mitobe, Kuroko, and Furihata. You’re our starting five this game. Hyuuga, and Mitobe, defense is needed but support with some three’s. Izuki and Furihata, you two work together to control the pacing of the court. Slow it down, speed it up, get the ball around. Kuroko,” she turns to the bluenette with a piercing, but encouraging gaze, “You’re on Attack right from the get-go. Slip by them and score as much as you can, and find opportunities for the others to score as well. Kinjo will come in late to the second quarter, and then play the rest of the game, but he’s strictly Decoy.” 

The team breaks it down with a cheer, and the five starters line up. 

Touou looks strong, even without Aomine. This game will be interesting for sure. Koganei-senpai takes the seat next to me as we watch the game start. It starts in our favor, Izuki getting the tip off courtesy of Mitobe. Izuki fires the ball to Furihata, who takes it up the court. This allows Kuroko to position himself perfectly to receive and score an easy lay up. 

Touou answers right back, and it’s a close battle. 

“You’re intense even when you watch the game Kinjo.” Koganei pipes up. 

“I am?” I ask while raising an eyebrow. 

“Yup! Intense is good though, means you’re treating the game seriously.” He smiles widely at me as we hear shouts of surprise from the court. Kuroko must be disappearing quite easily right now. 

“How intense am I really?” Curiosity gets the better of me as I can’t help but ask my upperclassman. 

Koganei looks away from me to watch the game, absently I notice Touou score a three pointer. “Everyone notices you, it’s hard to look away. When you’re into the game, it just amplifies it even more. You make others want to take the game more seriously, especially since you taught us all that The Zone isn’t this sacred place for the elite players. You’ve got drive, and you give other people drive as well.” 

My eyes widen as I take in his words. I gave my teammates the will to push themselves? Wow, that’s certainly not what I expected as his answer. 

The first quarter ends with a score of 23-28, Touou. 

His words still ring through my head as I start stretching out and warming myself up for my entrance into the game as the second quarter rolls on. Coach Riko waves me over, and I stand next to her. 

“Save The Zone for the second half.” That’s all she says to me. 

“Go get them!” Furihata says with a smile on his face, high fiving me as he goes to take a seat on the bench. 

The score is 37-39, Touou.

“Ready to go?” Izuki asks, clapping a hand on my shoulder. He jostles me a bit, and my wrist flares up in a dull pain. 

I grin, letting the pain wake me up. “Always.” 

The ball gets thrown in by number 9, and I go to defend. I stare the guy down, and like so many other people, he brings his hand forward enough for me to steal and sprint by him. Running between defenders, I spy Kuroko slipping around the court. Getting to the paint, I look left while I pass to the right. 

A textbook, no-look pass, straight into Kuroko’s hands and he takes a shot from behind the three point line with no one in his way. The ball sinks through the basket. 

Number 4, their Captain, gets the ball to throw it in. I survey the court quickly, making eye contact with Hyuuga and Kuroko. I stand in front of 4, waving my hands and jumping around focusing on keeping myself towards his left. He passes to his right, which is incidentally the last known location of Kuroko that he seems to have forgotten about. 

Kuroko redirects the pass to Hyuuga, who sinks a three pointer. 

43-39 Seirin. 

The buzzer goes off. 

Halftime. 


	32. Seirin Vs. Touou Pt. 2

We all go to the locker room for our halftime chat, and as I’m entering, I spy Aomine coming down the hall. Kuroko is standing next to me, and I can almost feel the anger rolling off of him. 

“So he decided to show up.” I say, and Kuroko leans into me slightly. 

“If he gets the ball, he isn’t going to pass.” He says quite bitterly. 

“Yeah, his whole policy isn’t conducive for a team sport.” That earns me a chop to the ribs. I craddle my side, pouting at my boyfriend. “I know he pisses you off with his attitude, but we’ll make him realize that he’s wrong. All of us, together.” 

“But you’re stuck with being Decoy, Kinjo. If you can’t score, how’s that going to work out?” Izuki speaks up, making our A and B conversation a conversation for the whole team. 

That makes me frown. “Izuki-senpai, I’m like almost a hundred percent sure that we’re even across the board for points between everyone. I’m not this super player that you’re trying to make me out to be, I’m someone who supports those around me. Yeah, I can score, and I like to sometimes, but I’m more than willing to pass the ball because I’m confident you all can score as well.” 

My team goes quiet, and I see wide eyes all around, even from Kuroko. The only one who isn’t surprised is Coach Riko. 

“He’s right.” She announces, drawing attention to herself. “Kinjo is actually third in points scored on the team. Izuki, you and Hyuuga lead the team in points right now. Him focusing all his attention on getting the ball to you guys is a boon.” 

“Oh!” I exclaim, remembering something. All eyes come back to me. “Aomine plays more streetball than anything. I played with him a few days ago, and it was really interesting.” 

“And that means?” Coach asks, looking at me with a raised eyebrow. 

“If I play differently than normal, don’t be surprised, that’s all.” My smile I’m sure is mischievous. Kuroko catches my eyes, and I can see the curiosity clear as crystal. 

  
  
  
  


I step out on the court, readying myself for the second half. Aomine is eyeing me, and I glance over and wave at him, purposefully using my left hand. He looks shocked at my cast, and that’s fair considering I only saw him a few days ago. 

“Kinjo! Kuroko! Go for it!” Coach Riko shouts out. 

I make eye contact with the bluenette, and we exchange smirks. 

The third quarter starts with Touou in possession of the ball, specifically Aomine. I go into Flow State easily, and go to block the brute. I don’t know if he notices it yet, or not, but his grin turns feral. He starts bobbing and weaving, going high and low, dribbling around himself so simply, but so fast. I spy Kuroko behind him.

I take a step back, creating some distance between us. 

The ball seemingly is attracted to my hand and I use his shock to run by Aomine. I spy my Captain off behind the three point line to my left. Making strides toward the net, I jump. Amazingly, Aomine is there in front of me to block the layup. 

What would be a layup I should say. Midair, I take the ball, wrapping my arm in this unnatural angle, and pass to Hyuuga. I bump into Aomine, and his arm hits my left hand, causing me to wince in pain as our feet make contact with the floor. 

Hyuuga sinks his three pointer, and Seirin scores the first points of the third quarter. 

I watch as Aomine growls, and demands for the ball. I see dark blue sparks fly from his eyes, and the monster awakens. His speed doubles, and he bounces the ball over me, passing me completely. It doesn’t matter though, because Kuroko steals the ball right before it can touch Aomine’s hand. 

I see genuine shock fill his features as Kuroko slips between defenders and goes to shoot. He shakes out of it, and rushes back with a wild burst of speed to try and block Kuroko’s shot. Seeing this, Kuroko shifts from his normal stance to his Phantom Shot stance, and the ball seemingly disappears right through the taller’s hand, and lands in the basket. 

“Tetsu, you’re in The Zone?” Aomine asks. 

Kuroko merely looks at him before turning to run down the court as the rest of Touou decide to play. 

Mitobe blocks the would-be dunk, and Izuki gets the ball. He takes it to about half court before he tries to pass to me. Aomine shoots forward and steals the ball, and dunks on the unmanned net. 

I get the ball on the throw in, and I’m being guarded by Aomine. Finally! I can talk. 

“Why’s everyone so afraid to play against you? This is fun!” 

“You won’t be having any fun while I’m kicking your ass!” He snarls at me, and tries to slap the ball from my right hand. I cross it over behind my back, my left hand slapping it back into my right hand since he pulls back to try and catch me on the left. 

I take the chance to launch the ball to Kuroko, who is jumping for a layup. Thanks to my old baseball skills, the throw is perfect, and we score. 

Aomine looks me in the eyes. “What the hell! You’re in The Zone too? What the fuck?!” He snaps, grabbing my jersey and pulling me close to him. Spittle flies onto my face before the sound of a whistle rings, and arms pull us away from each other. 

I’m awarded one penalty shot. It’s awkward with my cast, however, my shot goes in. 

Aomine keeps on trying to get by me and Kuroko, and most of the time, we’re able to hold him back. Either I say something, and he forgets about Kuroko, who steals the ball, or he manages to make his Formless shots.

The third quarter ends dead even with a score of 87-87. 

The fourth quarter picks up right where the third quarter left off. While Kuroko and I are effective against the monster that is Aomine, we are not getting the advantage. It’s been back and forth between the three of us, and even with Kuroko and I passing to our other teammates, Aomine is able to recover and block their shots a majority of the time. 

Coach Riko calls a time out with five minutes left, and the score is 96-98 Touou. All of us are huffing and puffing, the game wearing us down. We all huddle close around her. 

“Hyuuga, Izuki, Mitobe, go into The Zone.” She orders, and I grin. Oh this is going to be good. 

I see Kuroko looking over at the Touou bench and I nudge him. He turns to me, eye blazing. “Aomine-kun is going to come at us even harder.” 

“If he’s digging deep, we dig deeper. We don’t forget that he has teammates who are dangerous as well. We play together, and we’ll win.” I say, addressing the team, and not just Kuroko. I meet each of their eyes, and I see the determination sparking inside of them. 

The whistle blows, and the court changes. All five of us are in Flow State, and it’s evident that the atmosphere of the game is different to the other team. The four other members of Touou are hesitant when they meet our gaze, but Aomine doesn’t seem to notice it. Or he doesn’t care. It’s a toss up. 

Touou throws in the ball to Aomine, and I slip in front to block him. Izuki and Hyuuga wrap around faster than they ever have before, and Kuroko tips the ball to me. Aomine stands still while I pass so fast to Izuki who passes to Hyuuga, and we sink a three pointer. 

99-98, Seirin. 

Aomine keeps pushing himself, pushing and pushing, farther and farther to get some points. We stop him. We steal the ball constantly. Time keeps running down, but whenever Aomine has the ball, he keeps going. 

Thirty seconds left, and I defend against Aomine. It feels so much like the first time we played against one another. I’m just moving along with his dancing, and neither of us are willing to follow each other. Suddenly, he jumps back. 

I jump to try and block whatever shot he’s trying to pull off. I see his right arm come back, and then lean to my left. Sticking my left hand out, the ball smashes against my cast, and it’s flung out to the middle of the court where Kuroko picks it up and goes for the layup.

When the final buzzer sounds, the score is 109-102, Seirin. 


	33. Post Game

We all come down from Flow State, and my wrist throbs in pain. I look down and see that my cast has cracked, and the skin that I can see is turning red. 

“Ah, Coach.” I say, but no one hears me. 

That’s a first. 

Seirin is celebrating, yelling over each other. 

“Coach!” I exclaim, and everyone’s eyes turn to me. By everyone, I mean Seirin, Touou, and I can feel the eyes from the stands on me as well. 

I lift my arm, pain shooting through it, making me wince. Cold hands hold my arm steady. Kuroko guides me off the court, the mood suddenly somber. He takes me to the locker room, and I see yellow and green sprinting over to meet us. 

“Kise, Midorima? Why are you guys here?” I ask. Sure, these guys were friends of Kuroko, but only maybe acquaintances of mine. To come down and check on me seems like a bit of a stretch for these two. 

“Shut up you fool!” Midorima snaps, and then in contrast gently grabs my arm and pulls my cast off slowly. He analyzes, and I can see the cogs turn in his head. Then he levels me with a serious glare. “What kind of moron sticks out their fractured wrist to block a shot?!” 

“Yeah Kinjocchi, while it was cool it definitely wasn’t smart.” Kise remarks, glancing over Midorima’s shoulder. 

“Do you think there’s more damage?” Kuroko asks Midorima, while I glare defiantly at Kise. Kise sticks his tongue out at me, to which I roll my eyes. 

“No, more than likely just irritated it. The cast was more of a rush job than what it should have been though.” Suddenly Midorima turns his eyes on me. “Give me the name of the doctor who put the cast on you.” 

“Why?” The question falls from my mouth. 

Midorima pushes his glasses up on the bridge of his nose. “My family owns several hospitals, so I’ll make sure you get better service then this piece of shit cast.” 

I rattle off the name just as the rest of my team comes in. The locker room is starting to feel crowded. Coach Riko comes over and starts talking with Midorima, and I look over everyone’s faces. 

They are all morose, and it’s so annoying. 

“Oi!” I yell, attention on me. “Just because I’m out, doesn’t mean the rest of the tournament is over. Don’t you dare throw a pity party for me.” 

Captain Hyuuga sighs, and then speaks. “He’s right. We’ve got more games to look forward to, let’s keep our spirits high!” 

The team rallies their agreements, however, Kuroko sticks next to me. I feel his fingers ghost over my arm. My right hand comes up, and lays over his hand. 

“I’m fine Tet-kun.” I whisper, but Kuroko doesn’t look at me. 

“Why’d you do it?” He asks just as quietly. 

I shrug, and suddenly his glare fills my vision. Those blue eyes look righteous with fury. So I sigh, leaning back against the lockers. 

“In baseball, you’re always told to sacrifice your body for the sake of the play, offense or defense, it doesn’t matter. I suppose after years of having that drilled into my head, I wouldn’t think twice about doing what I did. I’d do it again right now if I needed to.” I explain as best as I can. 

His glare turns to a deadpan. Though this face seems more exasperated than usual. “You really have no sense of self preservation, Yu-kun.” 

I smile. “Yeah, not really.” 


	34. Spicy

I don’t know what it means, but Seirin loses the rest of their games at the Summer Interhighs. We lose, and I watch from the sideline since Coach Riko forbids me to play until my wrist heals. I watch as Kuroko struggles to play offense or defense, as Izuki loses sight of the court, as Mitobe gets knocked down, and as Hyuuga misses more shots. I watch as my teammates from the bench come into the game and try to pick the team up, but they fall short. 

It’s agonizing, but it’s interesting as well. It’s interesting to see the plays we manage to make, and I can see the holes in our plays that are easily exploited. 

Anyway, Seirin exits the Finals League as losers, and we are let go to enjoy the last two weeks of our summer break before school starts up again. 

On that first Saturday that we have off, I ask Kuroko to come over to my apartment. 

Nigou cheerfully greets my boyfriend at the door, and I go in for a hug. When I pull away, Kuroko is bright red. 

“You alright?” I ask, a little confused as to why he’s blushing so much. 

“Yu-kun surprises me sometimes, that’s all.” His tone is rushed, and I raise an eyebrow questioningly. 

“Me hugging you is a surprise? I must not be a very good boyfriend.” 

“Yu-kun could kiss me instead of hug me, that’d be better.” The petulance in his voice is aggravating, but when the words process in my head, I laugh. 

Leaning forward, I place a kiss to the corner of his mouth. When I pull away, I’m met with a pout. So I poke his cheek. 

“You never said where to kiss you.” I saunter over to my couch, and hear his footsteps follow. Sitting down, I look up at Kuroko as he comes to stand in front of me. 

He hovers there silently, and I don’t know what he is going to do. Possibilities fly through my mind at a great speed, and I lean over a bit towards the arm of the couch. 

Suddenly, He looms over me, straddling my hips, as his elbows rest on either side of my head, boxing me in. “Let me show you where I want my kisses.” 

Oh wow, that drop in pitch does something to me. 

His lips touch mine, and it’s way more forceful than I’m expecting. He overpowers me, guiding my mouth open and then sliding his tongue in. He caresses my tongue, and then I feel a hand secure itself in my hair. 

Our lips smack together, sloppy noises fill my apartment. His other hand trails down my body as my arms come up, one to wrap around his neck, my other to hold his waist. 

We make out, our hands roaming each other leisurely. It’s not a rush, but it is passionate. As quick as it began, Kuroko pulls away, his teeth catching my bottom lip and tugging. 

“I’d like my kisses there, though other places can be arranged.” He taunts with a smirk. His face is more expressive than I’ve ever seen it before. No blank mask to look through, his emotions are out in the open. It’s refreshing. 

“You… know I didn’t make the first move because I didn’t want to make you uncomfortable, right?” I ask, instead of replying to his taunt. 

He tilts his head, and very much looks like Nigou when the puppy is wondering why I don’t just feed him 24/7. 

“You’re Demisexual, I don’t want to do anything you’re not comfortable with. Tell me what your limits are. I’m good with everything so far, and we can just keep it to that if you want. Or we can do more, though I think taking this slow would be more fun.” I tack on the end bit as more of an afterthought, but of course Kuroko latches onto it. 

“What do you mean by it would be more fun if we went slow, Yu-kun?” 

My cheeks heat up a bit. “Just that waiting to do more, spacing it out, all of that will create sexual tension. It’d be more satisfying instead of just doing everything in one go, ya know?” 

Kuroko’s still on top of me, but now he pulls back and rests his weight on my groin and thighs. The pressure there makes me almost delirious, and I let loose a moan. I feel Kuroko’s body tense up, so I stare in confusion. 

He’s bright red now, the contrast between his face and his hair is really something to behold. Quickly shifting, and standing up, I turn myself into a sitting position. 

“Where we are right now is perfectly acceptable.” He states, though awkwardly trying not to look at me, but still look at me at the same time. 

It’s this moment where Nigou decides he wants to have attention as he jumps up on the couch and starts barking at Kuroko. My boyfriend picks up his dog, and gets a whole bunch of kisses from the like-eyed puppy. It’s extremely adorable, enough to make me calm down and just appreciate the sight. 

“While I enjoyed making out with you, I did kind of want to ask about what happened with the team and why everyone sucked for the last bit of that tournament?” I question, interrupting Kuroko’s doting on Nigou. 

The bluenette looks away from me, but sits down next to me. He leans on my shoulder, puppy in his lap. “It was like the soul of Seirin left us. I tried to get everyone to play better, our hearts were in it, but we didn’t have anyone to push us. Coach Riko and Hyuuga-senpai tried thinking of new plays and everything, but nothing worked.” 

“So Seirin had the heart and brain of the team, but not the soul?” I say a bit incredulously. 

My tone makes Kuroko look at me with a bit of a frown on his brow. 

“Yes. The soul of our team wasn’t able to play, wasn’t able to battle with us, so we didn’t know what to do.” He’s so confident in his statement, that I can’t refute him. I just reach my arm over his shoulders and draw him in even closer to my body. 

“Has Aomine gotten in contact with you again? Kise and Midorima did, so Aomine seems like the next one to add to that list.” 

I feel him sigh heavily against me. 

“No, but Momoi-san has texted me. She’s been sending me updates on Aomine-kun since we started high school. She says he’s actually talking about going to practices again, something about beating us the next time we play.” 

I chuckle. “I’m sure Kise and Midorima are doing the same thing.” 

“Then we’ll be ready to face them.” He mutters into my shoulder. 


End file.
